


The Killing Moon

by orphan_account



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: BAMF Leonardo (TMNT), Canon-Typical Violence, Elements of the IDW Comics, Gen, Good Older Sibling Leonardo (TMNT), Graphic Description of Corpses, Hurt Leonardo (TMNT), M/M, Michelangelo (TMNT) Needs a Hug, Protective Raphael (TMNT), Psychological Trauma, Scientist Donatello (TMNT), Slow Burn, Temporary Character Death - Leonardo, Worried Donatello (TMNT), Worried Raphael (TMNT)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:28:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 44,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23331649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The Super Shredder attempts to finally end Hamato Yoshi once and for all, but his plan is disrupted when there's a different body in his wake. Leonardo knows his family can't afford to lose their master, father....their true leader, so he sacrifices himself for Master Splinter. Three months later, he wakes up in a coffin buried at the edge of the woods. How is he back? Will he be forced the confront the Shredder one last time?
Relationships: Donatello & Casey Jones & Leonardo & Michelangelo & April O'Neil & Raphael (TMNT), Donatello & Leonardo & Michelangelo & Raphael & Splinter (TMNT), Donatello & Leonardo & Michelangelo & Raphael (TMNT), Leonardo & Shredder (TMNT), Leonardo/Raphael (TMNT)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 139





	1. Brother Mine

"Is this how you choose to die brother," The Shredder snarls throatily, the thunder falls of his footsteps rapidly approaching, "Lying on your belly like an animal?"

Splinter, wheezing wearily from the onslaught of merciless blows, reach forward with shaking fingers to grip his staff. With the steadiness of a toddler taking its first steps, the mutant rat manages to get back to his feet with his staff at his side. He narrows his eyes, his mouth curling into a deep grimace of pain and boiling anger.

"Come, Saki," Splinter tempts to gargantuan mutant monstrosity before himself, "End this madness."

The Shredder roars an ear-splitting scream from deep within that forces its way from his mouth, it is as if his tainted soul has unleashed a demon. Splinter's ears twitch as he crouches into a defensive stance, waiting for the opportune moment to avast the attack, and perhaps turn his enemy's speed against him. With a soft, barely imperceptible click, the end of his staff transforms into a whip, and with a crack he ravels it around the charging mutant's leg, swinging him off the edge of the roof.

Panting heavily, Splinter slowly turns to Raphael and April, quickly flitting his eyes over them for any signs of major injuries. "Yes," Raphael crows weakly, his mouth twisting into a weak smile as he leans heavily into April, "You did it, Sensei."

"My family," Splinter gasps out, relieved.

April's smile falters, and she whispers, "Oh, no," Eyes widening in horror she screams, "Splint - No!"

The only thing Splinter could hear in those few short moments, those precious few seconds, was his own heart beating steadily, slowly in his own ears. There's a great rush of wind as a body lunges in front of him, barely blocking the menacing blades of bone meant to impale him. There's a spray of crimson, blinding as it splashes against his face and a pained, guttural cry. He blinks, feeling drops of blood dribble down the fur on his face, and his mouth parts ever so slightly as he's thrown to the ground.

Splinter opens his eyes, runs his trembling fingers over his face in a poor attempt to wipe away the blood. "...No," He utters, voices the lowest of croaks, "No! Leonardo!"

Leonardo is collapsed against the Shredder, the blades of bone impaled in his abdomen and protruding from his splintering shell. The blue cladded turtle's eyes are wide open, shining with tears, and a flood of blood is dribbling from his gaping mouth. The mutant turtle releases a shuddering breath, his hands twitching weakly as they claw down the mutilated mass of flesh, the monster, holding him in place. A single tear trickles down his cheek as he gasps aloud, swallowing thickly against the tide of blood rising in his throat.

The Shredder growls lowly, lifting upwards with the claws of bone that protruded from his mutagen marred flesh. "And now, you will watch, Hamato Yoshi as I take everything you've ever loved," He lifts his great bulging arm upwards, hoisting the limp turtle into the air, "One at a time. And then, only then when you have nothing will you...die!"

Raphael's mouth went slack as a long, wailing cry of despair emitted from deep within. April screams in shock and horror, her hands raveling around the mutant turtle leaning on her, and she pulls him close as tears free fall from her cheeks. As Leonardo plummeted from the rooftop, air rushing in his ears he stared heavenward at the quickly fading starry night. His perception of time distorted, everything slowed down until there were nothing, only him and the night sky above, the sky that seemed to swallow him whole.

Leonardo's hand reached out, kissing the sky, grasping the endless crevasse of midnight darkness. Everything was a blur, a blur that swirled out of existence. His limbs flailed about uselessly as he hurtled towards the asphalt below. His eyes were blue like the ocean, shimmering and crashing beneath the sunset. Looking into his eyes was like looking through a fragile piece of sea glass, which laid in the sand glistening in the sunlight. With his final moments, that one last stuttering heartbeat that would soon come to a halt in his chest, he gazed at his brothers and he smiled. Those eyes, moist with final tears, slowly closed, as the blue cladded turtle resigned to his inevitable fate that would be met when he touched the ground.

"No," Michelangelo sobs, tearing away from Donatello as the older turtle attempts to hold him back, "No, no, no! Leo! Leo, no! No, please, you can't be - You can't be...!"

"Leonardo," Donatello utters weakly, his hand shakily going over his mouth. He stumbles backward, his eyes glued to the body, "Please...please...brother...?"

The Shredder let's out a low, throaty chuckle as he faces Splinter, his meaty fist-raising as he taunts, "He is just the first, rat. Your eldest boy," He snarls, "Is gone, and he will not be the last. No, I will peel your eyes open to make you watch as I take all of their lives -"

Tears halting, April slowly lifts her head, her teeth grit tightly as the wind rose around her. Her flaming red hair blasted behind her back with the strength of the rising energy emitted from the human girl. She threw a hand forward, screaming in agony as the power from within burst force like a crashing wave, slamming into the mutant monstrosity. With a deep, resounding impact down below, the mutant crashes into a garbage truck below, and the entire vehicle is jolted violently as heaping trash bags fly in different directions.

Casey grips the lever, wrenching it forward. Machine gears grind as the limp disfigured, mutant monstrosity is crushed in the grave impacter. The human coldly quips, "Oops."

Michelangelo falls to his knees beside the limp form of Leonardo, quickly taking his hand into his own, holding it tightly and to his chest. His fingers run down the bruised and bloodied knuckles, gently brushing away the torn shreds of the bandages in place there. The tears burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down the orange cladded turtle's freckled face. He bows his head, whimpering as he's overtaken by the sudden storm of flurried emotions.

_Leonardo gently wraps his arms around Michelangelo, settling his chin on top of his head. The television flashes in front of them, various cartoon characters darting back and forth with the warbled, noisy dialogue resounding across the eerily empty lair. The grainy image of space flits across the screen, the animated ship blasting across the glass as both young turtles watch in awe. As the main character steps into view, posed confidently with his blaster at the ready, and a wicked monologue to spew at a moment's notice, the blue cladded turtle grinned from ear to ear._

_"One day...I'm gonna be just like him. You'll see, Mikey."_

Donatello is crouched beside his younger brother, one hand gripping his brother's shoulder to steady himself, while the other gently rests over Leonardo's still chest. The purple cladded turtle can feel his chin tremble like that of a small child as his vision blues with stubbornly unshed tears. He gulps heavily, looking upwards as he attempts to blink away the tears. He grits his teeth and he clenches his eyes shut as a tear trickles down the side of his cheek.

"No, please," Donatello begs pathetically.

_Leonardo gently sets down the steaming mug in front of Donatello, and his free hand thumps at the back of his shell. At that moment, he can't hear what the blue cladded turtle says. He wants to, but it's only a painful ringing in his ears were words should be. Nonetheless, he watches the smile that slowly pulls across his brother's lips as he talks. This smile one of happiness growing, much as a spring flower opens. He could see how it came from deep inside to light his eyes and spread into every part of him._

Donatello feels with every fiber of his being the agonizing sadness and pain that ripped through him. He didn't want to see that smile in his head, in his eyes, for he knew he would never see that same smile again. The purple cladded turtle would never see the way light seemingly swelled from within those big blue hues and into his smile. He feels his grip falter on his little brother's shoulder, and he leans his head on top of his hand there.

Raphael roughly pushes away April and Splinter as his eyes land heavily on the body laying mere feet away. The red cladded turtle's lips part ever so slightly, and his breath leaves him in one stuttering, painful exhale like a bolt out of the blue. He staggers forward, almost in a haze as his emerald hues take in the devastating, gut-wrenching scene laid out before him. His brothers' sobs, their whispered words between one another, sound like static crackling in his ears as he lowers himself beside the body.

"Leonardo," The name chokes out of Raphael.

_Leonardo gently settles a hand over Raphael's shoulder, squeezing it with a tenderness rarely shared between the two brothers. Raphael's face turned a bright, burning red in embarrassment as he noncommittally gave the hand a simple pat in return. The blue cladded turtle rolls his eyes, commenting on the latter being "emotionally constipated", before slinging his other arm around his younger brother and pulling him against his chest. The red cladded turtle yelped in surprise as his older brother's knuckle digs into his skull, his musical laughter sounding in his ears._

Raphael liked to remember the simplistic times before he and his brothers had ventured to the surface. All four of the teenage turtles had been forced to change to fit into these new roles as heroes, and they greatly matured in the span of a few months, which then turned to years. But it had been Leonardo that had truly changed with his new collection of scars, his dull, world wary blue eyes, and his stiff expressions that seemed to never truly exude the emotion he was trying to portray. So when the blue cladded turtle laughed, truly laughed in a way that wasn't dry, or sarcastic, it meant the world to the brothers. It wasn't just a sound: It was his expression, the way his face twitched, the way his blue eyes filled with joy, the tear that started coming down his cheek, how he had to gasp for air.

Raphael's knuckles go white from clenching his fists so hard, and he grinds his teeth in an effort to remain silent. His hunched form exuded a deep-rooted hurting, a pain no one could ever understand, that was like acid - burning, slicing, potent. And he knows that he's hiding the truth from himself, of how much this is really to do with sadness and the scars that just won't heal. Yet his fists clench and his teeth lock up once the sound is out. His breathing ragged, he tried to stifle the broken cry that rose from his throat, but like a cork bursting from a bottle, the yell tore from his lips. He made no attempt to conceal or wipe away the tear that trickles down the corner of his eye.

Master Splinter crouches on his knees, resting his son's head in his lap as he gently runs his fingers down the side of his face. The dark blue mask that had been given when the young turtle could barely hold his wooden practice sword with a steady hand is soaked red with his own cold blood. It is torn and frayed beyond repair with small strings dangling from the side. The mutant rat grips the tails of the mask observes how the red seeps into the remaking blue colors at the very end.

_Leonardo holds his hands out eagerly, waiting for the heavy sword to be set into his hand. As the young turtle recognizes the weight of the katana a barely imperceptible smile twitched across his lips. He bows his head in respect, graciously accepting the sword. Master Splinter gently tucks a finger under the young turtle's chin, making him look up at him with those startlingly blue eyes. The mutant rat gives him a great smile that displays warmth and proudness he rarely lets leak to the surface._

_"Arigato, Sensei," Leonardo whispers in awe._

April leaned into Casey, crying uncontrollably into his shoulder as he held her in turn. Leonardo was gently raised from the ground, his arms carefully folded over his chest, with his katanas held in the arms of Master Splinter. Donatello and Raphael were at the front, holding his upper body upright and supporting his limp neck, while Michelangelo supported his legs as they slowly began their long, arduous journey back to their sewers.

———

April placed the flowers down at the base of the headstone and knelt on her knees to brush some of the dry twigs and leaves away. She sighed quietly and stared intently at the carved stone. Raphael had worked tirelessly, day and night, trying to make the headstone that resembled an outline of his brother with his signature katanas drawn and ready. Photographs, various well-wishes written and hidden away in envelopes, and other trinkets lean against the stone rising from the ground.

Hamato Leonardo.  
September 29, 1997 - February 18, 2014  
Beloved son and brother.  
Fearless leader.

Massaging the area above her heart, April clutched both hands in front of her and bent her head. Casey steps forward and gently pulls her away, letting the other attendants of the funeral observe the gravestone. All of the mutants that they had befriended through the years, through battle and hardship, had gathered to pay their respects. Along with a few new humans and mutants that the family and friends hadn't been knowing that the eldest turtle had connections with.

There was even a small card in the pile written in purple crayon from a little girl named Chloe. It depicts a poorly drawn Leonardo with a cup of tea in his hands wearing a flower bonnet with the little girl serving him a tray of cookies. Michelangelo would later tearfully recall Leonardo telling him about a lonely human girl whom he'd befriended that he still had tea with daily. Everyone's heads were down. Maybe it was them showing respect of maybe there were too afraid to look at what was coming. Master Splinter shakily steps forward, Leonardo's sharped and cleaned katana blades resting in his hands, and slowly goes to his knees, resting them at the base of the grave. Once on his knees, the seasoned warrior struggled to get back up, wincing as two of his sons come forward to steady him.

The sun shone brilliantly and the harvest colors of the fall day under its glare were offensively bright and cheerful. It was as if they conspired to show Master Splinter how the world would go on without Leonardo. But the mutant rat didn't want it to. The world should be as grey and foggy as his dull emotions, for he had shed every tear he possibly could. He believed that the world should be cold and damp with silent air, to echo that hollowness inside of his chest that could never be filled again. Every part of him, every fiber of his living being, wants to take his son's place in the grave before him, or find a way to bring his eldest back. But he cannot do either, not with the ones he'll leave behind. No, he has to stay, even if it is just for a little while longer.

**Three Months Later**

As Leonardo's shot open and a great, surging breath enters his lungs, his world was etched in charcoal, the once vibrant hues of the morning sky and earth below were no more than a vivid dream. The blue cladded turtle begins to panic when he can't move more than a centimeter on either side of his wide, muscular shoulders. His arms are folded over his plastron, and curiously his fingers wiggle, prodding over his platted chest as he consciously slowed his own erratic breathing. He lifted his arms from the elbow and his knuckles slammed against the lid of whatever he was in.

"Help! Help! Help," Leonardo wheezes, his voice extremely hoarse, the equivalent of a small mouse scratching on the wall.

Leonardo tries to recall just how he'd gotten himself into this trap, and distantly wonders if any of his brothers are in a similar predicament.

The blue cladded turtle coughs, blinking frantically to try and get the grit from his eyes as he wheezes, "R-Raph...R...D-Donn-Don...Mi-Mikey...."

Frowning to himself, Leonardo began to internally sort out the possibilities of where he could be, or who was responsible for his capture. He closes his eyes, exhaling slowly, clearing his mind of all the fear, anger, confusion, to try and sort out his scrambled memories. His blue eyes widen in awestruck horror but couldn't see anything because of the darkness surrounding him.

"No," The blue cladded turtle utters in denial.

_He's falling. The world rushes by in a blur and the mutant turtle knows that all too soon he'll stop falling. It goes by fast, yet slow, almost suspended. The air pushed against his face, he closed his watering blue eyes, waiting for the inevitable. The impact. But as he falls, for what seems like years, the last thing he sees is the mutilated flesh, the oozing veins of mutagen, and the lipless smile of the Shredder._

Leonardo's heart sank underneath his plastron at the startlingly realization of where he was. He was in a coffin, underground, buried alive. He clenched his eyes shut to keep from panicking and wriggled his hips around, his fingers frantically patting around the contents of the enclosed space. Long dead flowers that have crumpled into crushed remains that crinkle beneath his fingers, a long, winding piece of old, crusty cloth that he finds off to the side of his face. He runs his fingers down it, feels the tears and holes in the fabric, the crusty layer of grime and dust. His fist clenches around it, and he grits his teeth; his mask.

Screaming throatily, the blue cladded turtle manically pounds his fists on the wood above his head; dirt rains down on his face. He continues to pound, wedging his fingers in between the splintering sections of wood and forcing it upwards. Dry, crushing dirt rains down on him, spilling his mouth and pelting into his eyes. He hoists himself upwards with a pained gasp of air and begins trying to wiggle his way through the dirt.

In the middle of a grassy field, an intricate, carven gravestone is planted with fresh flowers at the base and a pair of twin katana. Leonardo's three-fingered hand bursts out of the dirt, followed by another. Digging his fingers into the hard surface of the undisturbed ground, he hoists himself upwards and he crawls his way out of the ground, groaning and gasping. He lies on his back, panting, and blinks his eyes open, quickly slapping his hand over his eyes and peaking between his fingers to look around in the glaring sunlight. Around the headstone are a perfect circle of bare trees and a golden carpet of leaves that crunch noisily underneath the weight of his body. There's a quiver in the chilling gusts of wind.

"R-Raph..." Leonardo croaks weakly as darkness begins to creep in from the corners of his vision, "H-Help...h...help...."

His breath seemed to stutter in his lungs before he let it go, feeling the tension drain from his body. His surroundings became fuzzy; then he saw nothing at all as it all faded to black. His consciousness was floating through an empty space filled with a thick static. Throughout the inky space, his heartbeats pounded loudly, echoing in his ears as his final attempt at a cry for help dies from his lips.

———

" _Raph_."

Raphael bolted upright in his mattress and fell to the ground as he got tangled up in his mass of sheets and blankets. He rubbed his eyes blearily and sat upon his cold floor. He frowned.

"Leonardo," The red cladded turtle utters blearily.


	2. Peaches & Cream

Raphael slowly makes his way across the dark lair, only the soft glow of the television providing any sort of guidance. Michelangelo is curled up on the couch, one leg kicked over the back, while the other rests sprawled out on the floor. The orange cladded turtle grunts, mumbles nonsensically as he shifts, kicking away the blanket that was already hanging off of his foot. The red cladded turtle stoops down and picks up the blanket, gently readjusting it over his little brother's body. Then he takes both of his wildly disproportionately arranged legs and arranges them on the couch.

Michelangelo's baby blue eyes blink open for a second, murmuring sleepily, "...L-L...L-Leo...?"

Raphael feels his jaw tense up at that as he grots out lowly, "Go back to sleep, Mike. You were dreamin'."

"I-It felt s...so r-real..." The orange classes turtle's eyelashes swoop down and his mouth stretches open in a wide arc as a yawn escapes him, " I...I...f-felt...h. h-him... C-c-called...m' n-n...name..."

"Me too," The red cladded turtle admits softly before his mouth snaps shut. A muscle in his jaw twitched, but he stands, shaking his head as he begins to tiptoe away towards the dojo.

The shrine Master Splinter had built of Leonardo had become a permanent staple in the dojo, a small corner of the room that was never disturbed by their rambunctiousness. Even the hyperactive Michelangelo treated the secluded area as Switzerland in the war zone the lair had become. Raphael kneeled on both knees as he takes a match from the small ceramic pot and begins lighting the candles surrounding the wooden structure that housed old, crumpled pictures, dried flowers, and other trinkets. He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply with the flicker of the candles on his face.

“Why’d you do it, Leo,” Raphael asks softly, keeping his eyes closed. It felt like he asked the same question on a constant loop every time he went to pay respects to his deceased brother, despite already knowing the answer all too well.

‘It was necessary.’

“ _It was necessary.”_

_Raphael’s fist went flying against Leonardo’s jaw, but the other mutant’s head didn’t even turn in the slightest. The red cladded turtle roared in pain, clutching at his fist like a toddler that had just gotten his hand smacked by his mother. The blue cladded turtle’s face was full of pity as he stood up from his spot on the rooftop, and went to stand beside his brother. Glancing down, the younger turtle noticed the drying blood splintered on his older brother’s knuckles._

_“If you’d like, you can hit me, again. This time I’d pretend the blow affected me,” Leonardo offers, rubbing at his already reddening cheek._

_Raphael huffs in annoyance, still clutching at his fist as he slouches back onto the edge of the roof. He didn’t answer his older brother, he just stares off into the distance, his jaw going tense as he runs the latter’s words in his head, over and over. It’s all too much. The look that his brother gives him - pity, pity that he hadn’t known. Those bright blue eyes, probing into his soul, desperately wanting to see what's going on in there._

_“Don’t look at me like that,” Raphael says that last,” Just... don’t.”_

_Leonardo nods in acknowledgment, casts his gaze towards the floor. “I am sorry,” He says, his grave voice filled with pity,” I know you never wanted to see that, but...it was necessary.”_

_“Necessary? Leo,” Raphael exclaims, jaw hanging open stupidly,” Those Purple Dragons...t-they were just kids - Damn kids who didn’t know any better! We don’t go after them -“_

_“Kids who robbed a defenseless old woman, left her paralyzed in the dark,” Leonardo snaps abruptly, eyes narrowing dangerously,” You think I like it? You think that I like having to do the necessary things, the things that keep your consciences clean, while mine goes in the gutter? Answer me, Raphael!”_

_The red cladded turtle’s eyes go wide as he stares at his older brother, shocked. ”Leo, I...” He gulps heavily, watches as the guilt slowly seeps into the latter’s stony expression, ”Look, I just...I know you do stuff like this to keep us, to keep everyone safe, but what about you?”_

_The bewildered expression on the blue cladded turtle’s is almost comical as he blinks rapidly at his younger brother like he had lobsters crawling out of his ears. ”What, ” He inquires, confused, ”Raph, I'm not sure I'm getting what you’re trying to -”_

_“Oh, for fuc - Leo, do you ever once take a step back and think about how the situation affects you? Not just us, but yourself,” Raphael questions seriously._

“ _No,” Leonardo answers plainly, mouth settling into a thin line,” It’s a nice sentiment, especially coming from you, but I just...I just, well, if I can be perfectly candid...I don’t have time.”_

_The red cladded turtle’s forehead creased and his emerald green eyes scrutinized the latter. “What the shell is that supposed to mean,” He utters at last,” Leo, if you’re implying - Look, I know you’ve got his weight on you, I weight I can never understand, and I hope that I never have to...But c’mon, Leo, you’re my big brother, my leader...my friend...you’ve gotta think of yourself.”_

_The blue cladded turtle’s eyes darted up towards his brother and the corners of his mouth quirked you into a pitying smile. “Don’t_ _start going soft on me. You’ll ruin the whole dynamic we’ve got going,” He sniffs, going on after a beat,” I don’t want any of you to ever, ever have to understand me. Why I do what I do, I mean. Your life will always come before mine. If I even take a moment to think about myself...”_

 _Gulping, Raphael grits out,” And if something_ _happens to you because you decided to play Fearless Leader? If you...” He flinches, hands clenching on his knee caps as he grits out,” If...if you die? What then?”_

_Leonardo’s gaze stayed heavenward as he states, voice strained as if he were admitting a sordid secret,” Mission accomplished.”_

———

Leonardo wakes up faster than a cat in ice-water, every sense urging him to claw his way to standing. He wasn't even on his very unsteady feet for more than a second or two, when his vision grew fuzzy and like a puppet cut of its strings toppled over onto the ground again. Apparently, his time spent in his grave was no short amount of time. His eyes weakly skimmed over his visible limbs, and he distantly realizes that while he looked as strong as ever, his body was likely none too pleased about being, well, putting it bluntly...dead.

"H-h-h....help...please," Leonardo gasps out, rolling onto his back,"...Help..."

Leonardo tries to swallow, but his mouth is too dry, his tongue swollen. Screaming for help is futile, he discovers. Not only does his voice not carry, vocal cords just as dry as the rest of his mouth, but there's simply no one to hear him. Slamming his balled fist into the ground beside him in frustration, he props himself up on his elbows and slowly with shaking arms brings himself to his feet again. This time he quickly stumbles towards the tree right beside his unearthed grave, ducking his head as a brief burst of nausea hits him like a fist to his stomach. His hand slaps over his mouth as he dry heaves, tears prickling from the corners of his eyes.

Leonardo blinks, his eyelashes fluttering over his lids as he brings his head upwards towards the darkening sky. He stood watching the line where heaven touched the earth. His wide blue eyes witnessed the resounding glowing collision. With the setting sun came a sky of fire, the crackling oranges, and reds of a hearth. The blue cladded turtle's eyes are steady to the horizon, face aglow with the last orange rays before the coming darkness of night beckons the stars. His lips bear the semblance of a smile. He felt small as he quickly glanced over his shoulder and saw his shadow slowly shrinking towards his feet. He looked back to the line, only a few bright streaks remained to signal the sun's setting.

"Gettin' dark," The mutant turtle murmurs to himself," If I'm gonna do this...gotta do it now..."

Leonardo was sure if that anyone could see him now, he'd likely be put down on the spot, for not only had he just clawed his way out of his grave but now he was hobbling towards the farmhouse like a zombie. Wheezing breaths, flailing limbs, grunts and groans, the whole nine yards. He can hear his youngest brother's nonsensical screams about the comic books he'd read about zombies in his head, and he can't help the smile that twitches to his lips. What would normally take a few footfalls during a light jog and a few seconds, had taken at least five minutes? By the time he's curled his fingers around the wooden railing of the house's steps and pulls himself upward towards the doorway, he's wheezing and sweating as hell if he'd just run a marathon. His fist curls around the knob, and he exhales in relief when he finds that the door isn't locked.

Leonardo takes several minutes to hobble around the farmhouse, having to practically drag himself up the rickety old steps, before he is completely satisfied that it was in fact empty. Judging by the layer of dust and the made-up beds upstairs, he assumed that no one had stayed in the house for several weeks at least. For the time being, he was completely and totally alone. He locked all of the doors and windows, drawing the curtains and cautiously flicks on the lights. He makes another trek up the treacherous stairs, cursing under his breath the entire trip. He practically trips into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him.

Leonardo wrenched the shower knob around until a steady spray of water erupted from the showerhead. He didn't even dip in a single-digit to test the temperature before he stepped in entirely and allowed the frigid water to flood over his aching, filthy body. Leaning his head against the tiled wall, the blue cladded turtle stared emptily at the floor, watching the dirt and blades of crumpled grass run down the drain. But then a rivulet of red joined the swirling filth down below, and it abruptly hit him that he was still wearing his claret encrusted bandana, wrappings and paddings.

Wincing, Leonardo gently untucked the end of his wrappings, wincing when dried, crusty sections caught to his skin and he had to tear them off. Bundling them up, he tossed them out onto the floor. The blue cladded turtle began to undo the straps of his padded gear, tossing them into the pile, before trailing his fingers down the dry, rubbed raw skin beneath the padding. He hisses in pain as his finger curiously prods at a larger section of blisters on his kneecap, and he pulls his hand away. With more trouble than he cared to admit, he slowly undid the ties that held his mask to his face, letting it flutter to the floor below.

Leonardo struggles to get a steady grip on the knob, but curling his fingers around it tightly he wrenches off the steady stream of water, feeling it stutter to a halt against his shell. But he keeps his head leaning against the tile wall, his breaths ragged and painfully slow, and it's only then that he realizes that he's shivering uncontrollably. The blue cladded turtle clenched his eyes shut, feeling his teeth chatter uncontrollably as he slowly lifts up his head. With unsteady legs, and both hands gripping the shower curtain, he stepped out of the shower and looked in the mirror.

Leonardo stumbles forward, his hands catching the edge of the sink as he blearily blinked and looked closer. His green skin was an unnaturally pale hue and his features were gaunt with dark shadows dancing across his sharp bones and under his eyes. His blue eyes had a deadness, a stillness. At that moment he knew he was already far away. The blue cladded turtle glared at the mirror, taking in the dusty surface that was covered in greasy fingerprints and there was a lipstick smear. Before he can fully comprehend his intentions, or better yet, think them out, his fist is flying forward with a cry into the mirror. The glass splinters beneath his fist, blood seeping onto the cracks as he pulls away from his bleeding fist. A few pieces of glass fall from the mirror, clinking into the sink.

Panting, Leonardo traces his finger down the cracked glass, staring hard at his new skewed reflection. "This...this can't be real..." He gulps heavily, "I-I died...I'm dead. I'm dead... I'm dead!"

———

Leonardo wandered around the house, ignoring his weakened body's adamant protesting in the form of varying forms of pain and frequent dizzy spells. The turtle simply couldn't find it within himself to lay back down, much less go to sleep, terrified that if he closed his eyes for more than a few mere seconds, he'd be back in that coffin under a mound of dirt. He had gone through all of the closets in the house, before finding some of his brothers' newly stored gear, and had tied black wrappings around his arms and legs. Before this, he'd found a first aid kit beneath the kitchen sink and had smartly cleaned all of his wounds, before covering the bandages with the wrappings. And his newly adorned blue mask had simply been found by accident when he had stumbled and fallen beside the bed while exploring his old room.

Now, Leonardo was leaning against the kitchen counter, chewing slowly and thoughtfully a mouthful of canned peaches. The can is in his grip, settled down on the counter, for he honestly doubted of his strength to hold it in the air. He stabbed his fork into the can, catching three juicy slices, before shoving the forkful of fruit into his mouth. As he swallowed, he had to repress a moan. The mutant turtle had already gone through three cans of tuna fish, a can of split-pea soup, and he was on his second canned fruit. He tilted the empty can back, gulping down the sweet, sticky juices left behind as he licks at his lips. He was reaching for a third can of fruit, pears this time when he thought better of it and began to make unsteady steps into the living room.

Leonardo's eyes flicked longingly to the house phone resting on the side table beside the couch. He takes small steps forward, his fingers reaching for the phone before he quickly pulls them away. He tries to rationalize to himself just why he couldn't just call the lair and tell them of his current predicament. And he buffs, annoyed with himself as he thinks of just what'd he would say if he did work up the nerve to call them. 'Hey, guys! It's me, Leonardo - Yes, the one who should be rotting in a wooden box right now. This is awkward, but I crawled my way out of my grave and now I'm just hanging out, kind of bored. Yeah, you know how it is. Listen, can anyone lend a hand?'

Scoffing to himself Leonardo slumps into the pile of comforters and pillows he'd arranged in front of the roaring fire. One by one he reaches into the pile of discarded padding and wrappings, tossing them into the crackling fire and watching them burn. The fireplace mimics the warmth of the day. The blue cladded turtle sits curled into a ball in front of the flame, his thin features illuminated by the flickering light, the only one in the room. Though the air isn't smokey he can smell the pine as it burns, just a faint fragrance, but hidden behind it is the bitter musk of the burning leather and cloth.

Leonardo laid his head down on one of the pillows, every inch of him from fighting the overwhelming exhaustion that washed over him, but this fight was one he could afford to lose. He feels the blackness come over him like a weighted blanket, but not a blanket of warmth but a blanket of coldness making him shiver. But somehow it's making his eyes feel heavier and heavier. He finally allows his eyes to close, feeling as if a heavyweight had been lifted off of his body, finally sending himself into a dreamless sleep.

Leonardo couldn't have been asleep for more than an hour or two when he's awoken by the sound of a loud, grinding car engine outside. Car lights flood in through the old curtains, and the ninja hisses to himself as he quickly limps over to the kitchen doorway, concealing himself behind the counter. The very same second he's safely hidden, the door is locked in by a gargantuan foot belonging to a certain rhinoceros mutant. There's a loud, huffing noise coming from the doorway that can only come from a warthog's large snout.

Leonardo turns his head upwards, groaning to himself in a whisper," You're not gonna give me a break, are you?"

"-Ain't no one else here, dawg. Except them...ghosts," Bebop whispers with a noticeable tremor on his voice," Some squatters were probably just stayin' da night, and bolted when they heard us pull up in that loud-ass hunk of metal."

"It is a good mode of transportation. Just bad gas mileage," Rocksteady objects," Master tells us to find turtle body and bring it back to fly-man, yes? Then we must hurry in doing so."

"Yo, Rocky, this is just plain sick, dawg. I ain't the biggest fan of the turtles, but this is gonna give us some bad mojo, " The warthog mutant squeals, kicking aside a pile of blankets.

The rhinoceros mutant growls throatily, and inquires," You mean we shall be sick when we see gross, mutilated turtle body -"

"Nah, sick as in sick, yo."

Rocksteady chuckles deeply," What do you mean, comrade? We commit much heinous crime."

Bebop growls, and there's an audible slap as he replies," But we ain't ever, ever committed a crime that would get us straight-up haunted, yo!"

"Haunted...? By wee ghost turtle," The rhinoceros mutant hisses," Ridiculous, comrade. The Bebop and the Rocksteady are no scared of silly ghost."

Leonardo smirks at that, slowly edging closer towards the doorway, before cupping his hands around his mouth. Lowering his already gravelly voice as low it will go, he snarls deeply," Where are my katanas," His voice booms across the living room," They were here and now they're gone - Where are they?"

Bebop squeals as he jumps into Rocksteady's arms, intertwining his arms around the latter's thick neck. "I told ya! I told ya," He cries, thumping the mutant rhinoceros on the side of his head," We've done you and pissed the spirits off now, dawg! He's fixin' to mess us up!"

"Ba," Rocksteady huffs, not convinced, before throwing the mutant in his arms back onto the ground with a reverberating thud," Rocksteady is no scared of tiny turtle with no body. Is only pathetic spirit now."

"Don't tell him that, ya ignoramus," The mutant warthog objects, waving his arms frantically," Don't pay no mind to my thick-skulled friend here, brother. I ain't ever done a thing to hurt ya - Er, not lately."

Rocksteady opens his largemouth to argue, when the Leonardo snatches up a handful of knives from the open dishwasher and throws them without even looking, or aiming. Both Rocksteady and Bebop scream in surprise, before jumping behind the couch for cover as the knives plunge into the wall where they'd been standing mere moments before. Slowly, the mutant rhinoceros raises a pair of massive white underwear and begins to wave it around. The mutant warthog grabs his cohort's hand and yanks it back down, frantically whispering something to him.

"We surrender," Rocksteady declares, waving the underwear again.

"Son, since when do ya wear tighty-whities," Bebop exclaims in surprise.

The mutant rhinoceros responds unashamedly," They is only undergarment that fit under large leathery rump. Also nicely accommodate tail."

The mutant warthog groans in disgust," Too many details, dawg. Way too many," There's a beat of silence, then he says," Look, uh, mutant-ghost-turtle-thing, we, uh, are just gonna skedaddle-skidoodle...Let ya haunt some other sucker, capisce?"

"Da, do we quiche?"

"Ya damn fool. It's capisce," Bebop snaps.

Rocksteady counters with a grunt," Is pretty sure is quiche."

Leonardo rolls his eyes in annoyance as the two goons continue arguing, and he grabs the cast iron skillet hanging above the oven. He twirls it in his grip, steadily creeping across the dark living room as the two mutants obnoxiously loud arguing drowned out what little noise he made. Crouching down, he inches his fingers towards one of the knives that had clattered to the floor, and he carefully brings it to his side, raising the skillet like a shield in front of himself. Suddenly both the mutant warthog and the mutant rhinoceros go stock still and their voices cut off as their eyes lay on the mutant turtle standing before him. The two mutants look at each other's ship their heads back to the blue cladded turtle, before turning back to one another and screaming in unison.

"Bad timing, scum - Real bad," Leonardo snarls.

"That's one damn solid lookin' ghost," Bebop squeaks pathetically, wrapping his trembling arms around the latter mutant," Ya ain't gonna...gonna give some bad mojo, are ya - Shit, what's this one's name, yo?"

Rocksteady gulps noisily, raising a shaking, meaty finger to state," I believe is Picasso."

"No? Uh, maybe...Frieda Kahlo," The mutant warthog volunteers with a nervous giggle, before quickly extending two of his stubby fingers together to make a makeshift cross," It ain't workin'!"

"I believe the Frieda is lady with the large eyebrow. Da?"

The way Leonardo's eyes squinted when he glared at Bebop and Rocksteady, reminded the two hapless mutants of a viper's slit-like pupils. Bebop gulped nervously. A burning animosity was developing in those blue orbs, and the mutant warthog could tell he and his friend were likely the root causes of the problem. Wordlessly, the mutant turtle twirls the skillet in his grip, before slamming it across the side of the mutant warthog's face with a resounding crack of bone. Blood spews from the warthog's fumbling lips and splatters across the hardwood floor, then he crumbles down like paper onto the ground as yellow canaries practically twitter around his head. But the mutant turtle doesn't stop there, before bringing the skillet over his head and bringing it down again and again and again.

"Eh, look, wee ghost-turtle-comrade," Rocksteady pleads to hold up his two very large mutant hands in defense," We no mean to disturb you, we just be on our way now, quiche?"

Leonardo's stony facial expression doesn't twitch as he slowly lowers himself down beside the unconscious Bebop, and none too gently tugs off the cloaking device attached to his belt. "A gift...for all of my troubles," He comments dryly, before plucking the pair of jangling keys from the other mutant's pockets," Capisce?"

"Quich-Capisce! Capisce," The mutant rhinoceros agrees with a toothy, forced smile. His eyes flicker over to his unconscious friend, lying eerily still in a pool of his one blood.

"He's not dead," Leonardo states throatily," But believe me...I was tempted. I've never been so close to taking one's life. But I won't let my anger turn me into one of you. Not now, not ever."

Leonardo turns his back, about to walk away, when he hears Rocksteady let out a long sigh of relief. Abruptly, he spins around on one heel and smashes the skillet over the top of the mutant rhinoceros' thick skull, feeling the painful reverberations shoot up his arm as the latter falls forward with a groan. The barely conscious body crashing to the ground makes the entire house's foundations tremble as dust rains down from above. Spinning the knife expertly, he stabs it into the side of the mutant rhinoceros' side, twisting it there with clenched teeth.

"Don't worry. I didn't hit anything important," The blue cladded turtle tells the other mutant coldly, lifting his shoulders and dropping them," But I exactly have you two goons following me, now, can I?"

Leonardo wrenches the knife out with a small spurt of blood, ignoring the pained moan that rose from the other mutant's throat, and tosses it across the room. He shoves the newly acquired cloaking device into his utility belt. Panting heavily with exhaustion, he begins to make his way towards the van parked a few feet away from the steps. The keys jingled softly in his grip as he unlocked the vehicle and took a heavy seat inside. He shoves the key into the ignition, twisting it with more force than necessary, and the engine roars to life as the lights flash on. He backs out of the driveway and swerves onto the dirt road leading away from the farmhouse.

———

Donatello sighs, flipping through his scrawl of hurriedly written notes. He miserably turns his gaze to the mutant rat in his newly crafted wheelchair and his eerily empty brown eyes that stare at nothing with his jaw slightly slack. April is standing beside him, her arm resting on the back of the wheelchair as she anxiously waits for the mutant turtle to report his findings to her. The mutant turtle abruptly slams his clipboard onto the metal table, leaning on his arms as he growls to himself in frustration.

Standing back upward, Donatello angrily yells," I just don't understand it! Aside from his legs, he's physically fine," His voice lowering, he utters," He shouldn't be declining this rapidly. At this rate, he'll be gone in a matter of days, if that."

"It isn't just his injuries from his fight against the Super Shredder," April whispers, keeping her eyes closed as she lifts her hand to rest on the side of Master Splinter's still face," It's...It's Leonardo."

The purple cladded turtle drops the glass beaker that was cupped between his hands, not even flinching as it shatters on the floor. "Leo," The mutant turtle wonders aloud, stooping to pick up the large prices of glass," No, you don't think - April, please..."

"That's all that I see when I look into his mind," The human girl tells him sadly," His body isn't failing, his mind is, Donnie. He's just...just lost the will to live. You, none of us, can help anymore."

Donatello wonders aloud, voice heavy with guilt, "H...How am I supposed to tell them, April? After..." He gulps heavily, flinching as he goes on, "...After Leonardo, I don't think...I don't think..."

"I know, " April responds, cutting him off, seeing how painful it is for the latter to voice his concerns," It's okay. It's going to be okay. We'll get through it, together, just like we always do."

"But we aren't together, " Donatello suddenly exclaims, his eyes swelling with his inner turmoil, "Leonardo, our leader, my big brother, he's gone, April! He was the one that kept us from falling apart...The duct tape and safety pins that held this disaster of a family together. We were barely able to keep together after...after... And now, Master Splinter is..."

April whispers softly, extending a hand towards her friend,"Donnie."

"I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you. I have no right, none whatsoever, to take anything out on you," The purple cladded turtle chokes out,"Y-You're a good friend...too good to us...to me."

The human girl gives him a watery smile, responding warmly,"You guys have always been more than friends to me - You've been a second family to me," She sniffs,"And don't worry, I miss him, too. Sometimes I forget he's gone, you know? I'll wander into his room, wondering where he is, until it hits me...and I just...j-j-ju-just..."

Brows knitting together in concern, Donatello gently shakes April's shoulder as he questions,"April? April? April!"

April clutches at her head, groaning aloud,"I-I'm getting a vision...it's..."

Like falling down a rabbit hole, the vision first throws here into complete darkness, before flashing various images - Rain comes in waves, splattering across the pavement and Leonardo stands alone. The blue cladded turtle has his head tilted upwards and his arms are limp at his sides as the droplets trickled down his eerily still face. Lightning came, a brilliant shock of white in the graphite sky, forking silently to the unsuspecting pavement - And the dark, vaporous outline of Oruku Saki, the Shredder, stood perfectly in line with Leonardo as if he were his shadow.

"Leo," April whispers, hand falling away from her head in shock.


	3. The Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Japanese phrase Leonardo says is roughly translated to: These swords will know blood.   
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Trust me, after this one everything is going to get kicked up a knotch! Please comment ;)

Raphael sat in a cross-legged position in front of a great array of flickering candles, the wax dripping onto the mat below, and his eyes stay closed as small tendrils of smoke arose. Slowly the oldest turtle stepped forward, sitting in front of his younger brother; flinching as his brother's eyes abruptly snap open a startled breath escaping him. Leonardo reaches his hand forward, moving to grasp Raphael's wrist, but the turtle stares straight behind him as if he isn't even there. The blue cladded turtle blinks, slowly lowering his hand as the painful realization sinks in. He isn't there with his red cladded brother, not in the body.

"Raph, I...I don't know if you can hear me," Leonardo chokes out as the latter's eyes slowly blink shut," But I just want you to know that I'm here. I'm here, little brother. And I'm coming home."

"L-Leo..." Raphael murmurs, eyelids twitching.

The blue cladded turtle feels a smile twitch against his lips as he utters," I'm almost home, Raph. I'm so close...I don't know how I'm back, or why but I know this," He closes his eyes briefly, sniffing softly," I'm never leaving you again. Do you hear me? I don't care who or what stands in my way. Nothing will stop me from coming home to you, to my family...Just promise me that you'll wait for me."

Raphael opens his eyes again, blinking rapidly as a deep frown appears on his lips. Hesitating, he reaches a shaking hand out before the shrine, nearly grazing the latter's astral form. "I must be losing it," The red cladded turtle confirms to himself, pulling his hand away as if burned. As soon as the words leave his lips all of the candles are extinguished with a sudden gust of wind," Really losing it, Raphie-boy."

Leonardo stood, watching as Raphael slowly makes his way towards the exit of the dojo with wary eyes scrutinizing the seemingly empty dojo. The blue cladded turtle followed behind his younger brother, but stumbles backward, overwhelmed at the sight of all of his brothers, his family, gathered in the pit of their lair. Michelangelo was splayed across the couch with a piece of pizza dangling over his head. Donatello is sitting in front of the couch, his shell laid back against it as he fiddled with a small remote control. Raphael is standing off to the side of the couch, arms crossed over his platted chest as his emerald hues narrow at the television.

"What are you watching," The red cladded turtle questions.

Chewing thoughtfully, the orange cladded turtle answers through his mouthful of partially chewed food," Space-Heroes: The Next Generation. I found the entire series boxed up in some abandoned video store."

"These are from the early '90s, but most were put in a landfill because the show was deemed too disturbing for kids," The purple cladded turtle chips in before yelping when the remote control emits an electric shock and smoke begins to rise from the device," For good reason, too. I bet it's even lamer than the first series."

The blue cladded turtle, despite knowing that his rant will not be seen or heard, flushes with anger as he growls," Of course you would say that! You wouldn't know quality television if it slapped you upside the head," And to emphasize that point, he slaps the turtle upside the head, but doesn't expect the startled cry that comes out of the latter's lips," Wha...he felt that?"

"What was that for, shell-for-brains," Donatello snaps, going to his feet," That was my neck, not a piece of pizza!"

Michelangelo, confused, replies with a frown," Did you finally short circuit? I didn't touch you, bro!"

Leonardo, realizing he was about to start a pointless brawl in the lair, stumbles back only for his hand to slap away the box of pizza from his youngest brother's fingers, right onto the back of Raphael's shell. Michelangelo's mouth nearly hits the floor as he laughs awkwardly. Raphael slowly turns around, the pizza sliding with a mess of cheese and tomato sauce down his shell with his eyes barely slits for how narrow they are. Donatello stands, gently settling the malfunctioning remote control on their makeshift coffee table in front of the television, before practically stomping to his youngest brother.

"Oh, you're gettin' it now, Mikey," Raphael growls lowly, cracking his knuckles.

Donatello scoffs, nudging the latter with his elbow," Never thought we'd agree on something, hot-head."

"Ditto, brainiac."

"Whoa, c'mon, dudes! I'm a soft-shelled turtle - Uncle, uncle," Michelangelo shrieks as his two older brothers pounce on him in unison.

Wincing, Leonardo whispers," Oops," He comes to close to jumping out of his shell when he feels a hand settle on his shoulder, gently squeezing it,"...Sensei? You...you can see me."

Master Splinter's lips curve up into a smile as he pulls his hand away. "It does my heart well to see you, my son," He states warmly," Come, we have much to discuss and very little time."

"S-Sensei, wait! I-I'm...I'm so lost and confused. I don't know what's happening, and I don't even know how I'm here...or why no one can see me or hear me," Shaking his head, the blue cladded turtle mumbles to himself," The last thing I remember is leaving the farmhouse and driving...but I stopped to sleep. Sensei, is all of this just a dream?"

"No, it is no dream. Though it may feel like it in your eyes, for you can not interact with this world as a living being can. But rest assured you are alive and well still," The mutant rat answers, stroking his beard before he begins to walk in the direction of the dojo," I have told you many times before, Leonardo, you are the most spiritually gifted of your brothers. You learned the power of mantras in a mere span of hours when it takes even the most skilled of ninjitsu masters a number of years. It seems that your temporary death unlocked another ability for you and that is astral projection."

"Astral projection?"

"Better known to common ears as dream-walking," Master Splinter explains as he goes to sit in front of his tree in the middle of the dojo, patting the mat beside him," The power to essentially leave your sleeping body and walk the earth in the form of a spirit. It is a rare ability, even rarer than the power of mantras, and the fact that you have both is a true testament to your skills."

Sighing in relief, Leonardo realizes aloud," So I'm just asleep?"

"Yes, my son. As am I, though I fear I am in a much deeper sleep, sleep from which I will never awaken from," The ninjitsu master states grimly.

"You're...you're dying," The mutant turtle inquires fearfully," No! How can you be - ?"

Master Splinter's eyes squeezed shut and a line appeared in between his brows as he tells his son," Many weeks ago, not too long after your death, your brothers and I faced the Super Shredder once more. We succeeded, but a great price," He motions a hand over his form," He crippled my body and now even my spirit is wavering. I am not long for this world. But you feared I was already lost."

Leonardo swallowed hard. The lump in his throat hit his stomach. Looking to Master Splinter, he nodded, admitting," I realized it soon after I woke up, that I couldn't sense your spirit...I thought that he, that monster, had at last succeeded in killing you," He flinches at the mere thought, before going on," But there is still hope. If I can be saved...surely you can -"

"I am afraid that I am well beyond saving. My time here is simply almost up. I am only grateful that as my spirit fails, you are here to guide me into the darkness," The mutant rat professes and tears shined in his brown hues. He wheezes, a hand going to his chest, "I will soon be trapped within the confines of my body, waiting to die, so you must not interrupt..."

"You're hurting."

"No, I am dying, my son. The hurt, I am equal to," Master Splinter coughs out," You are afraid?"

Leonardo lowered his head saying, "I fear if I even look you in the eyes you'll fade away. My sacrifice, my death was for nothing..."

"My son, it was always meant for me, your master and father, to be the first to fall. You must look me in the eyes. You fear death though you have already faced it once," The ninjitsu master grits out, tucking a finger under his son's chin and forcing him to look up, "And you must do so again, for there is a reason you were brought back..."

"The Super Shredder...is back, too," The blue cladded turtle grits out fearfully," Or he will be very soon. He is the only one that you fear and I can feel that same fear coming off of you in waves. If not even you can send him to rest permanently, how can I, Sensei?"

Master Splinter lets out a shuddering breath, his back falling against the tree as his astral form wavers, before reappearing fully again. "...Y...You are so much stronger than you know my son. In both spirit and body," His eyes fluttering closed briefly, slowly reopening as his hand reaches toward his eldest son, "Be strong for your brothers, your friends...for every life that will be taken if you do not defeat Oruku Saki once and for all. And remember, I will always be with you...with all of you..."

"Sensei..." Leonardo chokes out weakly.

"Do not worry," Master Splinter whispers hoarsely," I must go back to my own body. It will not be long now. You must go as well."

Leonardo opens his mouth to object, but with a small gust of wind, the astral form of Master Splinter is gone. "Sensei..." He gasps, his fingers curling into a tight fist at his side," I won't fail you, any of you..."

"It is only you and I know," A light, airy voice utters as the scene of the dojo abruptly fades to black.

"Who...what are you," Leonardo gasps out, turning on his heel to see what appears of the surface as a woman, but he can sense the otherworldly energy emitting from her.

The woman had hair that flowed down her back like black ink of a tilted piece of parchment. A traditionally painted mask of a fox covers the entirety of her face, leaving only her eyes exposed that stare at the turtle before her with a cold, hardness. Her eyes were fox-like and had an icy greyish green hue like the first sprouts of plants in the snow. Her body is clothed in a kimono of bright summer colors, and her entire outline has a slight glow to it.

"We have met once before, but that was another time, another life," The creature states, at last, taking a few steps forward as the back of her kimono twirls in the wind, "In this life, I am called Kitsune. What I am now is behind your mortal comprehension. And yet, despite appearances, I am nothing you need to fear."

Leonardo stares up at Kitsune, his blue hues meeting her green ones and his heartbeat stutters from deep within his platted chest. Slowly stepping forward, his hand resting on his chest he admits," I know. You won't hurt me..."

"No, young turtle. I pose no threat to you. I am simply here to guide you...to uncover your eyes and help you defeat the true menace which has lurked behind the darkest shadows of your life," Kitsune professes, reaching a pale hand forward," I will reveal to you where your ultimate salvation lies."

The blue cladded turtle nods knowingly and asks her, "Was it you that brought me back?"

"In a way, but I am merely a tool for another's plans," The fox-like woman informs the mutant turtle, sliding her hand across his face and cupping his cheek," You will find out in time who brought you back. For now, I need you to focus on why."

"To defeat Oruku Saki, the Shredder, once and for all," Leonardo states, tentatively reaching his own hand out to cover the one resting on his face," But I do not know if I can. I am afraid. More afraid than I have ever been of anything in my entire life..."

Kitsune explains to the latter, her free hand reaching to cup the other side of his face," You are strong enough to defeat this enemy, but you must first look into yourself and find that strength," Her eyes fluttering closed behind her mask," Do not fight me. The sensation that will flow over you will be like nothing you have ever felt before..."

"Will it hurt?"

"No, it will not be pain nor pleasure, but the fine line between," The fox-like woman explains briefly," Your spirit is your greatest strength, and in it, you will find your greatest power. When you have found that inner power you will wake up and live as you have never lived before."

———

A foreign energy is coiled inside of Leonardo when he comes to awareness. This new power was more than just a slight tingle that runs underneath his skin. No, it was as though someone had attached a live wire to each one of his nerves, stimulating renewed energy into them, and his mind ran rampant with tongues he did not know he could speak, mantras he had never taken the time to learn. The blue cladded turtle gradually went to his feet, keeping his arms in front of him as he expected for his limbs to object to the sudden movement. But no crippling pain shot up his muscles, and no dizziness plagued him as he brought his arms in front of himself, curling his fingers into fists.

"I...I can feel it," Leonardo utters to himself, voice hush with incredulity, "I've never felt power like this before."

"You've always had it," Kitsune whispers her words almost on the wind for how faint they are, "It has simply been dormant, buried deep within, for nearly all of your life out of fear of the unknown."

The blue cladded turtle whipped his head around, eyes searching the small space for the source of the low voice. "What am I supposed to do now," He wonders aloud, taking a heavily collapsing onto the driver's seat, leaning his head against the wheel, "My brothers, my friends...I...I don't want any of this. I just want to go home."

The fox-like woman murmurs, "What you do from this point forward is entirely your decision. I have given you everything you need to fulfill your mission, but it is you who must decide if you can, or will..."

"When this is all over..." Leonardo inquires faintly, bowing his head, "...will I get to stay?"

"...Not even I can know such a thing," Kitsune acknowledges.

Leonardo glances out the smudged window, shoves the jingling keys into the ignition and turns the key with more force than necessary. The city changes every few minutes on the journey to the manhole that leads into the familiar sewer tunnels; the downtown flicking between affluence and poverty. There are streets of upmarket stores, smooth black and glass exteriors, fancy names in fancier lettering. The kind of places with perfumed atmospheres made all the more inviting by music and well-groomed subservient staff; exchanging their tokens of the upper-class life for the swipe of a credit card.

In moments Leonardo is passing the run-down pawn shops, the liquor stores and dingy supermarkets that are about as wide as two bowling lanes. These human out-casts are clad in everything from skimpy summer ware to thick wintry jackets, either freezing in a back alley or roasting next to the fire on the cool fall night. On the sidewalk are spaced out women with wild tangles of hair and more than one person with a cart of aluminum cans. The blue cladded turtle parks in an empty alleyway, steadily creeping out of the van and sticking to the shadows until he reaches a solitary manhole beside a dumpster overflowing with trash.

Sliding down the ladder with his hands on either side, Leonardo lands on his feet with a splash of icy sewer water and a startled rat skitters past his feet. He slides his hand down his belt, retrieving the cloaking device he'd stolen from the mutant warthog and clicks it, watching with enrapt fascination as with a shimmering effect across his body he is rendered completely invisible. Wiggling his fingers in front of himself, he can't help but let out an amused chuckle, before resuming his trek down the sewers.

It feels like mere seconds before he's standing at the entrance of the eerily empty lair, his arms hanging at his sides as his eyes take in the sight. Unhurriedly, the blue cladded turtle crosses the threshold and makes his way across the unlit lair, completely soundless as his imperceptible form cautiously keeps to walls. He rolls into the dojo landing on a bent knee with one leg spanned at his side and his arms outstretched in a defensive position in front of himself. Not sensing a presence, he goes to his feet and saunters over to the weapons area in the dojo, his eyes settling over his familiar katana blades on the rack. 

Leonardo outstretches his fingers towards the blades, taking in the thin layer of dust covering the surface of the blades and his hands unexpectedly halt short. He goes to his knees, reaching under the weapons rack and pulls out a lengthy ashen chest with the ebony symbol of the Hamato Clan stamped on the front. His fingers undo the clasps of the box and he gingerly lifts open the lid, revealing a pair of twin katana unlike any he has wielded in his lifetime. They are thin, spindly blades, meant for warriors of speed rather than strength with a sharpness that could slice through the wind itself, all enveloped in plain grey sheathes.

Gently running his fingers underneath the sheathes and lifting the twin katana high into the air, Leonardo bows his head and utters lowly in rehearsed Japanese, "Korera no burēdo wa chi o shitte imasu."

Leonardo goes to his feet, strapping the sheathes tightly across his chest to rest on his shell. He closes the latch and pushes the chest back underneath the underside of the weapons rack, then he turns on his heel beginning to leave the dojo, nearly crashing into a human girl kneeling by the entryway. April is positioned on her knees in front of what appears to a shrine that is adorned with pictures of the blue cladded turtle, along with several trinkets and enveloped latter's scattered in front of the shine, all of which is surrounded by a circle of flickering candles. The human girl's eyes are closed, her arms folded with a bouquet of lilies resting across them.

"-I've heard them all in here talking to you, but no one more than Raph. He's worrying me, they're all worrying me, Leo," April murmurs, eyes fluttering open as she gently settles the bouquet at the base of the shrine," I try and talk to you when I can, but I know I don't do it near enough. It's just that so much has been going on lately - We're all at the end of our ropes here. I guess sitting here, being with you, it makes me wish now more than ever that you were here."

Leonardo feels warmth spread to his cheeks and he stretches his hand toward April, nearly skimming her shoulder, before he thinks better of it and pulls his hand back, holding it to his chest. "April..." He whispers to himself.

"Leo," The human gasps out eyes darting around the room as one hand goes to her temple, "I...I can sense you here. I can feel you."

The blue cladded turtle takes a step back, the swords at his back clinking softly as he holds his breath in anticipation. The human girl deliberately makes her way towards where he is standing stock-still, lips parted ever so slightly as a weak, stuttering breath escapes him. She tentatively reaches a hand forward the tips of her fingers barely grazing his cloaked cheek, feeling the cool reptilian skin and the pupils of her house eyes dilating. Not even thinking, the mutant cups the hand on his cheek.

"April! We're back from patrol," Donatello exclaims in the distance.

"You joinin' us for dinner," Raphael shouts across the lair.

"Dinner," Michelangelo shrieks giddily, the sounds of his nunchaku whizzing through the air reverberating through the lair," Now you're speaking my language, my turtle!"

Snorting, the red cladded turtle replies dryly," What language is that? Nitwit?"

"Haha, listen to the funny mutant," The orange cladded turtle grumbles back, blowing a raspberry in his older brother's direction.

"Yo, April? Where you at," Casey questions aloud.

"April?"

April slowly pulls her hand away, her lower lip trembling as she takes a step back. "Leo," She chokes out, but with a cool gust of wind she can no longer sense his presence," I'm in here!"

"What are you doing," Donatello questions, popping his head into the doorway.

"Nothing," April mutters, her expression poker-faced," I thought I felt a presence in here, but...it was nothing. Come on, let's go check on Master Splinter."

———

April twirls her chopsticks around the noodles in the take out container, eyes lazily watching the flickering screen. Donatello is beside sitting beside the human girl on the couch, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, his head resting in his hands. Michelangelo is the only one in the room truly watching the episode of Space Heroes: The Next Generation with interest. Even Ice Cream Kitty is seemingly melting with boredom in his bucket in between the orange cladded turtle's legs.

"You know, I'm starting to warm up to it," Donatello comments.

"Me too," April adds with a forced nod. She sighs to herself, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. The human girl knows that watching the cartoon, for all of them, but mainly the orange cladded turtle is a misguided attempt to grow closer to their deceased leader in blue.

The purple cladded turtle wryly comments," Penny for your thoughts?"

"That's not going to pay for my college," The human girl replies with a short chuckle before worry clouded her features," Donnie...I've been meaning to tell you -"

April, snapped out of her thoughts, turns her head at the sound of thundering footfalls and panting, exhausted breaths. Raphael collapses on the edge of the concrete platform that leads into the layer, and Casey places a hand on his shell, before falling against him with a pained groan, his hockey stick clattering to the ground. Michelangelo, Donatello, and April lunge out front their lax positions and run over to their weary, beaten friends with concern in their eyes.

"What the heck happened," April exclaims worriedly. 

Raphael weakly lifts his head, his voice thick as he begins to explain, "We were on our way back from patrolling the city when we found this crazy robed cultist-looking guy about to perform what looked like a sacrifice -"

Casey snorts, cutting in," So Casey Jones and his sidekick, Raph, gave chase."

The mutant turtle in red barks out," Sidekick?"

Ignoring the latter's outburst the human boy goes on," We tried to corner to robbed dude, but he escapes at the last second."

"Escaped," Raphael snarls facing the latter with an angry gleam in his emerald hues," Clearly they kicked our butts to Queens, but whatever. There were way more of them than us."

Donatello rolls his eyes at the banter, before interrupting with a sigh," Well, what were they? Human? Robot? Mutant?"

"Kangaroo men," Michelangelo inquires excitedly, slinging his arm around the latter with a broad grin.

"I don't know," Raphael responds honestly," But whatever they were, they were faster and way stronger. Even by my standards and that means something."

The purple cladded turtle hums in thought, tapping his chin," My security sensors have been sensing more homeless people in the sewers. At least I thought they were homeless people."

The red cladded turtle suddenly bursts out," Wait? You knew about this and you're just now mentioning it," He claps his hands together sarcastically," Way to go, Donnie! Way to go! You've only been the leader for three months now and that's nearly the hundredth time you've nearly gotten one of us killed. You should get a damn medal!"

"Look, Raph, I'm not getting into it with you. You're just sore because you got your shell handed to you -"

"-Because you decided not to fill in the class on super-human cultist freaks wandering our sewers -"

"-Obviously I didn't know, Raph! Now, stop it! I won't let you use me as your personal punching bag -"

April swipes her arm across the air yelling," Enough both of you! We don't have time for this," She lowers her arm, eyes scrutinizing both turtles," If these creatures are trying to hurt people then we need to stop arguing amongst ourselves and do something!"

Donatello nods stiffly and apologizes," I...I'm sorry, April. You're right," He turns to his brother and with a huff admits," I should have to told you, everyone, that we had news in the sewer."

"Damn right," Raphael responds coarsely, but when April raises one brow at him he goes on with a roll of his eyes, "I...I still shouldn't have snapped at you like that, I guess."

"Aw! Now hug it out, bros," Michelangelo squeals, throwing his arms over his brothers' shoulders, "C'mon!"

April laughs softly and turns to Donatello, asking the mutant turtle," Do we have any upgrades that we can use against these weirdos?"

"Hmm. I could upgrade the motion sensors around the lair to track down out robed friends," The purple cladded turtle informs the human girl, nonchalantly throwing his younger brother off to the side as his face screws up in thought," I can get to work on that right now. Wait - You were trying to tell me something earlier, weren't you?"

Waving him off, the human girl tells him," It can wait. It was probably nothing."

Shrugging, the mutant turtle says," If you say so. Give me two shakes of a turtle's tail, then we'll all meet up and distribute the new devices."

"Sounds good to me. Any objections," April asks, eyes scanning over the group, "Good. Guys, you've got to stop starting fights over little things. We can't afford to be driven apart."

"Yeah. Take some chill pills, bros," Casey adds.

Michelangelo raises his hand and April sighs aloud, questioning the mutant turtle,” Yes, Mikey?”

“Does this mean the team meeting is over?”

“Well, I suppose so. Yes -“

Michelangelo is already laid out on the couch and reaching for the remote, when Donatello beats him to the draw, snatching it from under his younger brother’s hand. “We’ve had enough Space Heroes for the day, maybe even the year,” The purple cladded turtle comments, flipping the channels before the television screen flickers to show a news broadcast,” Besides, you two need to see if those things have been spotted anywhere else. While I do work on those new motion sensors.”

"I hate watchin' the news! It's all bad nowadays! It's like nothin' has changed," Raphael barks out abruptly, slouching onto the floor," These rival gangs out there bangin' heads. It ticks me off!"

"...Raph, everything ticks you off," Michelangelo points out, raising a finger in objection.

"Not everything," The red cladded turtle snaps, before conceding with a grunt," Alright, everything.“

———

“-Retsu. Zai. Zen,” Leonardo blinks open his eyes as watches as his hands laid out across the unconscious mutants’ chests take on a bright white glow that radiates across their bodies. He pulls away his hands as the two mutants slowly blink into awareness,” Welcome back. Now, let’s pick up where we left off, preferably without coming to blows this time.”

Bebop squeals, his face stiff as his lips barely part to speak,” Shit! What’d ya do to us - ?”

“I healed any external wounds you had from our last encounter so that we could have a proper conversation,” Leonardo states, going to his feet,” But I also used a paralysis mantra on you, but don’t worry, if all goes well I’ll lift it.”

Gritting through his teeth, his lips twitching Rocksteady grunts,” So...you is not the ghost...?”

The blue cladded turtle snorts, answering shortly,” Not that I know of.”

Growling in frustration, the mutant warthog spits out,” I told ya there wasn't no ghost!"

Mouth agape the mutant rhinoceros barks out,” You is one who insists wee turtle is ghost! Now you is trying to blame the Rocksteady - !”

Shaking his head weakly, the mutant warthog shouts back,” Nope! Ya betta not try and pin this on me, pinhead,” Snorting, large nostrils flaring he goes on,” I told ya, over and over again, there wasn’t no ghost - But you just kept on wailin’ and cryin’ to me! Now, ya see he obviously ain’t no ghost - He’s a warlock...usin’ that mojo on us -“

Leonardo clears his throat, making the two mutants fall silent and their eyes flicker up to where he’s standing. “You guys can argue about who got you into this mess later,” He tells them, folding his arms over his platted chest as he steps closer to the two motionless mutants,” Right now, you two are going to focus on just how you’re getting out of it.”

“Look, I’ve got some sick hookups, turtle man,” Bebop immediately offers, his lips quivering into a wide, toothy grin,” I can get you some, uh, some...Yo! What do turtles like...? Ain’t it like, uh, calzones or somethin’...?”

“I believe is pizza.”

“Ain’t a calzone just like a folded up pizza?”

“Is different. Very different,” Rocksteady huffs, suggesting,” They also like the, uh, what’s it called...wax...for turtles...”

“Turtle wax ain’t actually for turtles, ya damn fool! How about some nice...er...I ain’t got nothin’,” The mutant warthog admits, his large ears flattening.

“Don’t worry, I’ve already got a trade in mind,” The mutant turtle informs him, amusement glinting in his eyes,” But first I have a question: Why were you looking for my body?"

The mutant rhinoceros grumbles, eyes swiveling around the room as he answers rigidly,” Well, the cat man is our new boss man, and he says that he needs it for fancy-schmancy ritual."

“We ain’t know nothin’ about that crazy-ass ritual tho. I don’t do none of that shit,” Bebop cuts in,” Tiger Claw keeps us on the down-low. He just told us to grab your body and get it to him pronto.”

“Now our asses is the grass,” Rocksteady mutters, nostrils flaring.

Leonardo gave the mutants a once-over, before the corners of his mouth turn up and he utters,” Then you get me to him, problem solved on both ends,” When the two mutants stare at him incredulously, he goes on,” You’re doing both of us and taking me to Tiger Claw, but I can’t have him killing me all over again...so I guess I’ll just have to play dead.”

"Son, how in the hell do we explain why you look so...fleshy,” The mutant warthog demands,” And who in their right mind would even wanna be part of some wack-ass ritual - ?”

“I’m the ninja here, I’ve got it covered,” The blue cladded turtle responds, his face scrunching up,” Besides my reasons are my own, and what do you care? For all Tiger Claw knows, you have no idea that I‘m still up and kicking, and he won’t.”

The mutant rhinoceros sighs,” Ah, this is where threats of violent come in, comrade. We is very used to this -“

Leonardo shakes his head, observing aloud as he crouches down,” No, fear alone won't keep you in line. The second you think my guard is down you'll turn on me because you're both morons that don’t have a single tactical bone in your bodies. So I guess you'll need a little honey along with this vinegar,” He smirked, continuing,” How about two doses of retromutagen?"

“Retromutagen...? Ya mean ya can cure us,” Bebop squeals, gawking,” I...I can finally get to lookin’ at the ladies again? Ya hear that, ladies? Ya man is back...!”

“How will wee turtle fill its end of bargain,” Rocksteady questions uneasily, eyes narrowing.

Leonardo answers simply,” I’ll get two doses from my brother. I don’t doubt he’s already got a whole batch ready,” He sniffs,” I’m sure he wouldn’t mind gettin’ you two out of our hair.”

“The turtle does not seem to realize he does not have the hair -“

“-It’s an expression, dummy -“

Leonardo, rolling his eyes, swats both mutants upside the head, exclaiming in agitation,” Hey! Eyes up here. Listen, this is going to be a mutually beneficial agreement, so I’m trusting you guys on this, which is stupid enough,” The blue cladded turtle states, then he places a glowing hand on each of their chests,” And I just undid the paralysis mantra. Listen, the deal is like this - You two take me to Tiger Claw and keep your traps shut, I don’t kick both of your asses and throw the retromutagen into the ocean.”

“It’s a deal, homie,” Bebop shouts, lunging up.

“Da! Deal it is,” Rocksteady agrees, going to his feet, making the floorboards beneath his gargantuan feet creak loudly and dust falls from the ceiling,” Now, how we get wee turtle to cat-man when turtle is very obviously too...living...?”

Leonardo interjects,” I told you two. I’ve got it covered. Follow me,” He makes his way across the living room towards the doorway, before marching outside towards the van. He pulls open the back door and lays out across the back,” Having spent time with the Shredder, I’m going to guess that you two are familiar with at least a few ninja techniques?”

“Nyte,” Rocksteady states.

“Nah,” Bebop adds, waving his hand,” We don’t know nothin’ about any of that crazy ninja junk. We stayed out of ol’ Shred’s way...! Dude had a temper, temper.”

Leonardo crossed his legs, sitting up straight in the lotus position, and closes his eyes. “Well, in order to keep up appearances, I’ll be using Chi Gong, which is a ninjitsu breathing technique,” He inhales slowly, his lips parted ever so slightly,” The technique slows my heart rate and breathing, until it halts all together, making it to where on the surface I appear visibly dead. It was used by ancient ninjitsu masters to survive any atmosphere. By the time we reach New York again, it’ll appear as if I’m dead. Though I’ll still be quite ’fleshy’ as you said, so you’ll have to make something up.”

“That’s wack, yo,” Bebop quips, slamming the door shut.

“Is very wack as comrade says,” Rocksteady adds with uproarious laughter. The two side doors screech open, the mutant warthog takes a seat on the driver’s side and cranks up the engine, while the mutant rhinoceros stoops over into the passenger seat.

Leonardo peaks one eye open, stating coldly,” I feel this doesn’t need to be said, but I think I don’t want there to be any mistakes made,” He blinks both eyes again, taking in another deep breath,” If either of you tries messing with me while I’m ‘dead’, not only will neither of you get any retromutagen, but you’ll both be forfeiting your lives. My death didn’t stick once, who’s to say it won’t again?”


	4. This Does Not Spark Joy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I hope you guys enjoy it because it’s finally happeningggg - Yes! The turtles and their human allies find out their leader in blue is alive! But they’re kind of in the middle of a battle, so I couldn’t squeeze in too much reunion fluff. But don’t worry! The next chapter will be FULL of it! Please comment and tell me what you think!

Raphael reaches into the duffel bag where the remaining devices lay, and his eyes narrow at the sight of his t-cell flashing a bright red and emitting high pitched tones. "Aw, sewer apples! One of the sensors is already going off right down that tunnel," He turns towards his younger brother standing at the opposite end of the tunnel, shouting," Let's get a move on, Mikey!"

"Whoa, dude," Michelangelo exclaims, poking his head out from one of the tunnels," Should we call the guys?"

The red cladded turtle retorts, curling his hand into a fist," We don't need backup. I'm gonna pay those little freaks back in full for the little shell-kickin' they gave me earlier. Hell, I'll even leave a tip!"

"Dude," The orange cladded turtle yells waving his hands frantically," Hold up! Maybe we should take a sec and think about this -"

"Since when do you care about thinkin'? We need to act," Raphael barks back in agitation, grabbing the tails of his brother's mask and dragging him upwards," C'mon! We're gonna lose them!"

"Oh," Michelangelo huffs, slapping off the latter's hand," This does not spark joy, my dude."

There's a chittering down the tunnel as the two mutant turtles skid to a halt as the older of the two raises his fist. The creature hisses lowly as its brightly colored eyes flicker over in their direction before it shifts underneath its cloak and continues wriggling its way down the tunnel. Two more creatures come from two opposite tunnels, forming one straight line as the creatures chitter in unison, their light steps barely imperceptible in the winding, dark tunnels. The three creatures skitter up a ladder, their claws clinking against the rusty metal and the two mutant turtles follow.

Raphael and Michelangelo push aside the manhole just in time to see the three creatures scale a wall with ease and climb in through an open window. The two mutant turtles meet each other's eyes and with a quick nod, they scale the wall until they reach the glass dome-shaped roof peering in curiously. The three creatures are gathered around a wooden pedestal hosting a scroll that has crimson ink scraped over it in a foreign language neither recognize. One reaches forward and curls its fury, pointed fingers round the scroll, furling it closed before holding it high over its head.

"Mavakaa sekulaa nadavaaaa," The creatures chant in unison, their voices animalistic growls and snarls as they paw at the claws clenching onto the scroll, "Mavalaa sekul -"

"Booyakasha," Michelangelo cries out, dropping down from the ceiling with one of his nunchaku drawn," You're not going anywhere with that old paper, dudes!"

Raphael yanks out both of sai, Rowling them expertly in his grip as he growls," Hey, guys. Remember me," He smirks, charging," I know it's hard to forget a handsome mug like this!"

The orange cladded turtle emits a battle cry swinging his fist towards one of the snarling creatures. "Hiya-Whoa," He squeals in horror, as his fist squelches moistly into the thing's face. He groans, shaking his arm frantically and pulls it free with a long trail of warm, sticky sludge that oozes from the thing's mouth," Ew - Ahhh!"

"Hold still so I can hurt you," The red cladded turtle snarls, irritated as the thing evades the blades of his sais with ease. Then his younger brother is thrown into him, making them both soar through the air before slamming into the wall," Damn it, Mikey! I'm not lettin' these things kick my shell again! I'll never hear the end of it -"

"Bro! Duck," Michelangelo calls, rolling onto his side with his grappling hook at the ready," Ha!"

"Nice one, Mikey," Raphael compliments as the scroll is knocked out of the creature's hand and goes tumbling out the window," Now, c'mon! We're gonna get that scroll - !"

———

"Long story short -" Raphael is cut off with a yelp as Donatello shoves his arm back into his socket without any warning. He sighs aloud, going on as he experimentally twists his arm,"-We didn't get the friggin' scroll."

"Oh, and who's fault is that," Donatello demands, slamming the lid of his first aid kit shut," You should have called us, so we could have come up with a plan of attack!"

The red cladded turtle snarls back," I had a plan - _Attack_! I can't just sit around waitin' for you to formulate a plan that ain't even gonna work," He taps the side of his head with his finger," You overthink things!"

"And you apparently don't think at all - !" The purple cladded turtle hisses.

"Can you guys both just simmer down," The orange cladded turtle interjects.

April exhales sharply, her hand resting on her forehead as she utters," Mikey is right. We're all tense right now and it's giving me a headache," She turns to the purple cladded turtle, asking him," What happened, happened. It's over now, and no one was seriously hurt. Let's just focus on the scroll now."

Donatello nods stiffly, clearing his throat and announces," Okay, guys, listen up. This is important," He diverts his gaze to his laptop and his fingers hurriedly dance along the keys," So the penthouse belongs to a wealthy collector of the weird and obscure, mostly magical stuff.

Michelangelo peaks over his brother's shoulder commenting," Sounds like the perfect candidate for I'm the boss of a freaky cult."

The purple cladded turtle scrolls over to a picture in the corner, informing the group," I think this is the scroll they stole: The Scroll of the Demodragon."

Casey interjects, his voice laced with panic," A scroll? Like a magic scroll," He groans, tossing his head back and clenching his eyes shut," Aww, man, I hate magic."

Eyes flitting over the brightly lite computer screen, Donatello continues," It's an ancient evocation said to summon a powerful monster called Kavaxas," As he says the name, the lights overhead flicker and he frowns deeply, before going on hesitantly," He, uh, belongs to a mythical race of Demodragons believed to reside in the Netherworld. Magicians are rumored to have summoned them for a millennia, their efforts always ending in tragedy."

"Eh, sounds like a bunch of nonsense to me," Raphael states with a shrug," I mean, a friggin' dragon with as lame a name as Kavaxas - " The lights flicker again, this time a bulb shattering overhead and the shards barely miss the red cladded turtle," I take it back! It’s a great name - Awesome name!” 

Abruptly, Michelangelo squeals in excitement," Aw, yeah! Ghoul busting Mikey to the rescue - Ow," He squawks in surprise as his older brother's hand slaps his face," Ow!"

"What'd I tell you about the imagination thing, huh," The red cladded turtle snaps as the latter growls at him," Focus!"

April rolls her eyes, and turns to Donatello, inquiring softly," What have you got, Donnie?"

"Well, with the new sensors I've determined a clear pattern of movement," Donatello motions a hand over the map depicted on his laptop," Right here under the south-east part of Lower Manhattan. And here and here. But they all converge at what appears to be a dead-end at this one place."

The human girl wonders aloud," Hmm, you think this is where they live?"

"Whoo," The orange cladded turtle cuts inc wiggling his fingers as his hovers behind his older brother," If they're actually alive."

The purple cladded turtle scoffs," Alright, meeting dismissed. I think I have lunch duty-"

"Finally! I'm so hungry I could think straight," The orange cladded turtle groans in relief.

"And here I thought you were just born that way," The red cladded turtle quips.

———

Raphael sighs aloud, his shoulder slumping as his eyes scan over a picture of Leonardo in particular. He kneels in front of the shrine, gently taking the picture into his hand. "I remember when this was taken," He utters, his eyes softening at the image of his smiling older brother," It was a little while after you woke up during that time we spent at the farmhouse. We found an old vintage camera while we were doing some spring cleaning and I actually managed to sneak up on you. I think it's the only picture we have of you were you're not forcing that big toothy grin of yours. You were painfully unphotogenic."

"He was," April agrees, slowly entering the room and going to stand by the latter," Sorry if you want I can come back later -"

"No," The red cladded turtle objects, consciously scooting over," I can share. But don't get used to it

The human girl laughs softly, kneeling beside him as she tells him," I won't," Her eyes land on the photograph in his hand," Huh, that one actually isn't half bad. There weren't a lot of bad things you could say about Leo, but man, he never looked good in a picture."

"He tried too hard," Raphael states, sliding the picture back into its place," It was moments like that when he just allowed himself to cut loose and not care about how the world saw him, that he looked the best. Sorry, uh, we should probably get going. The guys will be expectin' us -"

"Raph, I hear him, too," April interjects solemnly, placing her hand over his," You don't have to close yourself off to me, to any of us, because you're afraid of what we'll think. Maybe they hear him too -"

The red cladded turtle gently pulls his hand away, coldly informing the girl," You don't hear him, not the way I do. No one does," His jaw clenches," Don't act like you know me! You may be able to get a reading off of me, but you'll never, ever know what - You know what just forget it!"

The human girl's eyes go downcast and she apologizes," I'm sorry, Raph. I shouldn't push you into talking about things you're not comfortable -"

"No, you shouldn't," Raphael snaps, agitated. He shakes his head, groaning as he goes on," It doesn't matter, okay? Just go. I'll meet up with you guys in a minute."

April nods, going to her feet and leaving the room without another word.

_Raphael stood at the doorway, his hands stubbornly folded over his plastron. "You hurt yourself again," He scoffs taking a few steps closer," I thought you were supposed to be perfect?"_

_Leonardo shrugged nonchalantly and attempted to use a single hand to fix his injured arm. "I never claim to be perfect," He states simply," He lets out a barely audible grunt of pain, before continuing," You're the ones who just assume I should be."_

_With a sigh Raphael leaned close and took the roll, gently winding it around his arm. "Here, let me," He grunts out," Hold still."_

_The blue cladded turtle watched for a few seconds, then turned away, whispering," Raph...?"_

_The red cladded turtle looked up slowly, his fingers still lingering over his brother's arm. With a hitched breath the latter turned away again. The sai wielding turtle accidentally tugged on the bandage too tightly, making the latter yelp in pain and his fingers curl around his wrist, clenching down on it._

_"Carefully," Leonardo grits out, easing his fingers off the latter's wrist._

_"S-sorry," Raphael grunts out, but the other turtle shook his head, shaking off his brother's apology," Maybe if you'd stop wigglin' like a damn worm -"_

_Raphael's cheeks abruptly reddened as those big blue eyes bore into his and his lips part ever so slightly. Leonardo simply turned his back to him, gently tugging his arm away as he goes to stand. The red cladded turtle catches his arm, making the other turtle stiffen and snap his head around to face him. The blue cladded turtle blinks stupidly at the latter, gulping nervously, before turning to face his brother again, not pulling away from the hand enclosed on his arm._

_"Leo..."_

Raphael shakes his head, gritting his teeth as he goes to his feet. "Damn it, " He hisses to himself, slamming his fist into the side of his leg," Pull it together, man."

"Uh, who are talking to, Raph," Donatello questions, suddenly entering the room.

"No one important," The red cladded turtle answers briskly," Just myself. Come on, let's head out."

———

The group runs swiftly, their footsteps soundlessly as their feet kiss the concrete, until their leader signals for them to halt. "Hmm. This is the place where they meet up," Donatello states aloud, motioning to the tunnels surrounding the area where he stands," Doesn't look suspicious. April do you have a reading?"

April raises her fingers to her temple and she grunts," I sense something strange close by, but I can't pinpoint it."

"What's the plan," Raphael demands.

"I'm thinking," Donatello murmurs to himself, tapping his chin in thought," And it's hard to do with your heavy breathing -"

Casey interjects, pointing a gloved hand down one of the tunnels," Dudes, we got creepers creeping stage right!"

Three of the creatures emerge from the darkness, chittering softly among themselves. Filing into a single line, they glide across the concrete simultaneously, down the tunnel until they reach a spacious area with drainage pipes branching up the walls and into the concrete floors. One creature steps forward, grazing its claws against a single brick and the entire wall splits apart with the low rumbling sound of rock. Running hunched over with their arms extended behind their backs, the group moves swiftly into the crevice in the wall, not alerting the creatures that were roaming not too far up ahead.

The two oldest of the mutant turtles edge forward, taking the lead as they carefully step down a flight of stairs that leads down a torch-lit hallway. In the distance, there is throaty chanting in an indiscernible language. Donatello abruptly stops, lifting his fist up to signal the rest of the group. Raphael goes to stand beside his brother and stiffens when the eerie chanting grows louder. The two turtles edge forward, taking a stance beside two towering boulders that are on either side of the gaping mouth in the stone wall. The youngest of the turtles and the two humans in their company split up behind the rocks, tentatively peering from their concealed spots to see what is occurring on down below.

Hundreds of the creatures are huddled closely, in a great, swarming crowd, as they chant while swaying their hooded bodies. In front of the crowd of hooded creatures, is a pair of winding steps that lead up to a great stone platform with a pointed star that is surrounded by flickering candles that scarcely illuminate the darkness. A tall, stocky figure in a cloak slowly makes their way up the steps, the back of his hood swaying in the chilling wind that blows throughout the cavern.

"Children," The figure's deep, gravelly voice booms across the space as he stands on the stone platform," Our time is nigh. We finally have the Scroll of the Demodragon in our possession! We shall soon summon a being who will give us all the power we will ever need," Then he brings his hand forward, yanking down his hood," But first -"

"Tiger Claw is the cult leader," Donatello utters, shocked.

"-my Foot Cultists. Long ago, it was prophesied by an ancient and powerful witch that once served our clan, that a turtle bearing the color blue on his banner would be the one to slay our master," The mutant tiger sweeps his arm forward and two more mutants enter from a small entryway towards the back, a large bundle hidden by cloth in their arms," Today, as a reminder of our success, I bring you this very fine gift..."

Michelangelo gasps aloud, pointing towards the two approaching mutants," Bebop and Rocksteady? This whole thing is wack, bros!"

Bebop and Rocksteady lay the bundle at Tiger Claw's face, before giving him a stiff bow in unison and stepping back. Tiger Claw gives a toothy smile, roughly undoing the ropes that hold the cloth around the bulging bundle and tears open the cloth. He reaches between the two parted sheets and produces a muscular, green-hued arm that is completely limp in his grip. He chuckles, letting it drop onto the rock floor below with a reverberating thud. The hand is stiff and pale, the three fingers curled up around empty air.

"No," Donatello chokes out, gulping thickly," He wouldn't - He wouldn't dare!"

Tiger Claw takes a step forward, revealing the corpse lying slack on the torn and frayed sheets of cloth. "Leonardo, the blue bearing turtle, is dead," He hisses coldly," And it shall be our master that rises! You all understand the higher truth of our goal! Now I will use the scroll to summon Kavaxas! And with this mystic Seal of the Ancients, I will control him, and be his master."

Michelangelo has his face buried into the side of Raphael's shell, unable to look at the pale, limp form of their deceased brother. Leonardo's eyes were wide open, his lips parted, but his blue irises held a sudden sadness. Raphael holds his brother close with one arm, listening to his muffled sniffles and hitched breaths, but his eyes are glued to the corpse of his brother. Those emerald eyes had a deadness, a stillness. His unmoving gaze was accompanied by deliberate slow breathing like he was fighting something back from within and losing horribly.

"Leo," Raphael grits out, his voice hollow.

"Alright, dudes. Not good. Not good at all," Casey squeals to the group, panicking," We need to like do somethin' and quick, yo!"

The purple cladded turtle's eyes burned with an anger that rarely boiled up to the surface of the turtle. "April, Casey, and Mikey, you guys distract the cultists, while Raph and I get that seal," The color was drained out of his face," Then we're getting his body back. We won't let them desecrate his memory, not for a damn second longer!"

"Let's do it! I'm ready," The human boy exclaims in anticipation, quickly standing with a hockey stick at the ready.

The human girl chirps," Me too!"

"I'm pretty sure these guys are ready too," The orange cladded turtle squeaks nervously, pointing at a small company of cultists growling in the corner.

"Aww, sewer pickles!"

Swinging his hockey stick into a defensive stance, Casey demands," You couldn't sense them, Red?"

"Their minds aren't like human minds," April replies, raising her bladed fan.

With a few grunts of exertion, the clashing of their weapons against the inhuman creatures, the mutant turtles and two humans are wrangled up. They're all thrown to their knees in front of the mutant tiger, toppling over onto their stomachs as the cultists dig their feet into their backs forcing them down.

"My old enemies. Perfect timing," Tiger Claw purrs, his hands folded behind his back," Now you can bear witness."

Growling, Raphael thrashes upwards, facing the latter," The Foot is done for! Master Splinter saw to that," He scoffs, scrutinizing the mutant tiger," Why'd you come back? So we could kick your striped ass again?"

"The Foot is by no means finished," The mutant tiger retorts, raising his metal hand and clutching it into a tight fist," Look all around you. We have been reborn. After our last battle, when your master put an end to mine, the Foot was forced underground. And in these very sewers, we discovered a strange race of creatures completely dedicated to the Shredder. But before they would completely give themselves over to me and my commands, they demanded that I present to them the body of your fallen brother. For they too had heard the prophecy and wanted to be sure there would be no interference."

Tiger Claw slams his foot over the turtle's unmoving chest, before kicking it down the stairs, and it limply tumbles down the steps, before rolling to a stop a mere few inches from April. April chokes out a breath, clenching her eyes shut as she attempts to turn her head away. Raphael roars, thrashing violently against the clawed hands holding him in place. Michelangelo pants heavily, pulling against the claws that dig into his skin as he attempts to tug away from the creatures. Donatello is the only one of the mutant turtles that can stand to stare at Leonardo, his eyes scrutinizing the corpse as his brows furrow in confusion.

"You may have him back now. You will be joining him soon enough," The mutant tiger states coldly.

"Leo! Leo," The red cladded turtle cries out, leaning forward against the hands keeping him pinned down," Don't touch him - You son of a - !"

Tiger Claw chuckles deeply as he descends down the stairs, crouching down and lifting the corpse's head by his blue bandana tails. "Make them watch," He orders the creatures, dropping the lolling head onto the ground with a thud," I want their eyes to behold the coming of a greater being, Kavaxas, the most powerful of all the Demodragons."

"Let us go, Tiger Dude," Casey grits out," Or I'll knock all nine lives out of you."

"...And his power will soon belong to me," The mutant tiger trails off, slotting the stone seal into the podium. As the stone slips into the podium, lave bursts forth from the stone pillar, spilling into the cracks surrounding the pointed star in the middle of the platform, "Navasa, zaan, kanda, athrovaxa, noruto, zavasay."

A pillar of billowing smoke erupts from the middle of the carved star and the chanting of the cultists resumes, but this time the mutant tiger joins in, "Mavakaa, sekulaa, nadavaaa..."

April watches with horror as lighting strikes in bursts around the pillar of fire, not noticing a three-fingered hand creeping around to the tanto blade at her back. The fire erupts into a mountainous form, and a shock wave blasts everyone around it back with a force as the crackling flames abruptly goes out with a gush of smoke. The turtles and their human allies grunt in unison as they're thrown onto their backs, and skid across the rocky ground. The Demodragon emerges from the receding smoke with blazing yellow eyes that turn skin into a sickly pallor, and claws able to lacerate even the sturdiest to mere ribbons of flesh and bone.

"Mortal," Kavaxas demands with a growl, "You dare call upon Kavaxas?"

"Great, another villain that speaks in third-person," Donatello huffs, mouth pulled into a tight line.

"I will burn you and the rest of these abominations to ash," The Demodragon snarls, snapping open his cavernous maw of razor-sharp teeth to release a column of emerald-colored flames.

Gulping, the purple cladded turtle nervously states," On second thought, he can speak however he may like. Who am I to judge?"

Tiger Claw thrust the Seal of the Ancients into the fast-approaching flames, making them part around his form. "You will do nothing, but obey me," He hisses in response, brandishing the seal.

"Ahh! The Seal of the Ancients," Kavaxas roars in fear, thrusting one scale arm in front of itself," You are wiser than I thought, creature. Very well, then. What would you have me do," He grits his fangs, before giving a stiff bow," Master?"

The mutant tiger laughs haughtily, ordering him," You will destroy the turtles and their human allies, as a sign of fidelity to the Foot. Make it slow. Make it painful...just like it was for their dearly departed brother."

The orange cladded turtle heaves the corpse of his brother up onto his lap, resting his hand on his face. "What do we do, dudes," He whispers pathetically,"... _Leo_..."

"As you command," The Demodragon purrs lowly, wings thrusting out to either side of him as he crouches, before taking flight.

"Get him," The purple cladded turtle commands throatily.

Michelangelo stands, gently laying down the body onto the ground, and he gives a determined nod before he pulls out his nunchaku and charges forward with a battle cry. Raphael brandishes his sais forward, snarling low underneath his breath as he darts up the steps. Donatello swings his bow staff forward, trialing after his two brothers with their two human allies at his back. Kavaxas lets out a deafening roar, his maw cracking open just as a billow of green flames bursts forth.l and the turtles and their allies stiffen, their eyes widening. Leonardo's eyes shoot open and with a flurried mantra muttered underneath his breath, he's lunging in between the group and fire-breathing demon raging above their heads with only a tanto blade. The entire outline of the mutant turtle's body has a soft glow to it and that dull gleam extends to the short blade in his tight grip.

"What," Kavaxas roars in surprise, eyes widening as his flames are instantly extinguished as they clash against the small metal blade, "What's this? A mortal gifted in the arts - ?"

Leonardo slowly lowers the steaming tanto blade, stepping back to take a defensive stance as he growls to the demon," Don't you dare touch them!"

"It cannot be," Tiger Claw roars, slashing his arm across the air," It's not possible!"

"It can be and it is," The blue cladded turtle retorts, raising one arm forward with the tanto blade drawn steadily in front of himself," Now, let them go, or you'll be forfeiting your lives! And...you'll have to face something far worse than any creature that rises from the Netherworld - A severely pissed off older brother!"

"Leo," The red cladded turtle gasps out, as his lower lip quivered.

The purple cladded turtle whispers," Leo...He's alive...he's alive! But how - ?"

The human girl smiles weakly as she whispers, "I knew I felt him...I _knew_ it."

The mutant tiger shakes his head, hissing a command," Ignore the others, for now, end him, now! _Now_!"

Recovering from his initial shock, the orange cladded turtle twirls one nunchuck in the air, lassoing one of the gargantuan beast's arms. The Demodragon smirks, his lips slowly parting to reveal a pointed grin as flames crackle down the chain of the nunchuck and the turtle is sent flailing back with a cry of pain. Just as he pummels near the edge of the platform, the blue cladded turtle lunges in front of him with a shout, skidding across the rocky surface on his knees and cradling the younger turtle in his arms.

Leonardo grabs both of the latter's arms pulling him to his feet and swiftly commands," Mikey, I need you to listen to me," Then his eyes widen as a great ball of fire nearly slams into the younger turtle, before he grabs him by his shoulders and tosses him off to the side," I need you to get to the others and get the shell out of here. I'll hold that thing back."

Michelangelo nods frantically, shouting in return, "You got it, dude!"

Suddenly Leonardo turns to Raphael who is staring at his brother with his jaw hanging open, his eyes wide. "Stop gawking at me and pay attention," He shouts, muttering a quick incantation that forces his brother to turn around and face the cultists banding together to surround him.

April is suddenly running towards them and she calls out over the chaos,"Leo!"

Leonardo turns to her, yelling over the thundering of rock crumbling from the walls,"April! Kavaxas is impervious to physical attacks. It's up to you and me to hold him back while the others escape," Eyes boring into the human girl, he questions her," Can you do that?"

The human girl nods and responds determinedly," Yeah. Yeah, I can do that."

"When I say so, you're going to retreat, too, and follow the others out," The blue cladded turtle adds, and almost as if sensing she's about to object, he goes on," And that's an order."

"Okay," April agrees as a muscle in her jaw twitches," And you'll be following me out?"

Leonardo let out a soft chuckle, handing her back her tanto blade as he comments wryly," I just got back from the dead. I'm not that eager to die again any time soon."

"What will you fight with?"

"Don't worry. I've got that covered," The blue cladded turtle extends his hand behind his back tot he pair of empty sheathes there and incants under his breath, "Watashi!"

April blinks rapidly as a long, svelte katana blade seemingly apparates into his grip as he pulls his hand forward. Leonardo then turns his attention to Raphael, who narrowly avoids a burst of lasers from Kavaxas' spindly fingers with a backflip, before turning his gaze to the other turtle. Panting, the red cladded turtle stares at the latter, his emerald eyes assessing him as he opens his mouth to say something. Then another fiery rain of lasers ours down, splintering the rock and sending great chunks of debris into the air, and he grumbles in frustration, charging towards the demon with his sais drawn.

"Raph, Donnie, Mik- _Don't_!"

Donatello charges toward Kavaxas with his bo staff spinning expertly from hand to hand, but as he pounced forward with a battle cry, he's thrown off the side of a platform. Raphael and Casey charge up the stairs in unison with Michelangelo hot on their tails. Casey skates forward, retracting the electric prong from his glove, only to have a fist slam into his stomach and send him flying through the air. Raphael roars in anger, jumping into the air with his sais drawn in front of himself, but the flat of the creature's palm swats him down, then its tail snaps against Michelangelo.

"They never listen," Leonardo hisses in aggravation, running towards Raphael, gently placing a hand on the side of his face, "You guys have to go, now! Help Donnie and Mikey, then tuck your stubborn tails and run!"

Raphael settles his own hand over the one on his face, staring up at the latter with wide eyes. "Leo...I'm not leavin' you. Not again," He hisses softly, fingers squeezing his hand tightly," You can't make me."

"Go! It's okay," The blue cladded turtle exclaims, quickly pulling his hand away," I'll be okay. I'll be right behind you."

The red cladded turtle hesitates, before getting to his feet with a pained grunt and runs towards the edge of the platform. He crouches low with the human boy, gripping his brother's hands and attempts to have him upwards. The blue cladded turtle turns to face the human girl, giving her a quick nod and raises his hands in front of himself, incanting a mantra hurriedly under his breath as a pale glow appears over the outline of his body.

"April! He's trying to attack them from behind," Leonardo barks out," Cover them!" 

"Right," April exclaims as both skid to a halt in front of the group, and she slams her body over the turtle and the human, screaming," Duck!"

April stands upright, her hands extended at either side of herself and the fire splits in half, roaring on either side of the hunched group. The heat of the flames are close but they do not even singe them. Kavaxas growls in frustration, parting his fingers and making the ball of fire expand, pushing into the telekinetic shield the human girl had formed around herself and her friends. She slams her energy forward, and with a cry of pain, combined with determination, the great ball of fire is extinguished and she falls to her knees.

"The mortal has gifts," Kavaxas realizes aloud with a sneer, his hands dropping to his sides," And when I eat her whole, I will absorb her power and use it as I wish!"

April grunts weakly, throwing her hands forward with a small burst of telekinetic energy, before her head goes slack. Kavaxas laughs as his thunderous footsteps approach the defenseless human girl. The human girl shakily raises her head again, jaw tight as she raises her hands upwards and grits out," Why can't I...move you?"

"Because I am not of this reality, child - Aughhhh," The Demodragon roars in agony as a smoldering blade slashes across his extended hand, tearing a barely visible cut into the scaly flesh," What? What's this? No mortal, in all my years of life, has ever been able to make bleed my own blood!"

Leonardo twirls the katana blade, extending his arm to his side as he crouches with the blade in front of himself. "Go! All of you retreat, now," He barks out tensely, the glow around his body fluctuating,”I said now!"

"Let's go," Raphael exclaims, stepping behind his older brother to help April up as she moans softly in pain," C'mon, Mikey! Get movin'! Leo -"

"I'm right behind you," Leonardo reassures him, slowly reaching into his belt, fingers fumbling around a smoke bomb.

Kavaxas purrs pleasantly, not making a move to retaliate as he watches the group disperse and scale the rock walls surrounding the caverns. "You, you are quite the interesting mortal...you're very different. I can feel it in the very air you breathe," He steps closer as the latter's lips draw back into a snarl, "Oh, and I can smell it on you, too. You reek of an odor I am all too familiar with...death."

Leonardo's nostrils flared and his mouth twisted. "I died," He informs him bluntly," Obviously it didn't stick."

The Demodragon gave him a lopsided grin, his mouthful of razor-sharp teeth glinting in the torchlight. "You are no mortal, or at least not like any I've ever encountered. It's a shame I shall have to make you one with death once more," He opines pleasantly, "A bit redundant, seeing as your new breath of life is already flickering out like a candle in the wind."

"Death is overrated," The blue cladded turtle quips, smirking as he crushes the smoke bomb in his grip.

Then he scales up the wall, digging his hands into small crevices in the rock to boost him upwards until he gets to the gaping mouth in the wall. Then he feels hands scrabbling around his arms and heaving him upwards before he's yanked up onto his feet. He feels a warm, calloused hand curl around his wrist with a crushing grip, and then he's been tugging down the tunnel with the burning heat of flames licking at his feet. He's panting by the time the one holding his wrist skids to a halt, collapsing against the side of the tunnel they're all running down.

Leonardo glances down, trailing his eyes up the arm that belongs to the hand still holding fast to his wrist until he's staring dumbly at Raphael. He gulps softly, splaying his fingers over the hand in place there and feels the digits around the flesh of his wrist contract in response. "Guys," He utters at last and all eyes are suddenly on him, "It's...It's a long story..."

"I don't care, bro," Michelangelo chokes out, launching himself into his arms, burying his face into the crook of his neck, "Just tell me you're real, dude. Please, just tell me that you're here...!"

Leonardo sniffs, "I'm here, Mikey. I'm real."

Donatello goes to his knees at Leonardo's side, raveling his long, muscular arms around him and pulling him close. "Explain everything later, but for now...just..." He trails off, but his arms tighten instinctively," I don't even care how or why not right now."

Raphael keeps his fingers clutched around his wrist and wordlessly embraces him with one arm, resting his head against the side of his face. Leonardo closes his eyes, breathing shakily as he brings his own arms around the brothers huddled around him, tugging them closer to him. The world around turned into a blur, even the sounds, and he paused as a lone tear traced down his cheek. His eyes flicker up to the two humans standing a few feet away, and he gives them a watery smile, then wordlessly they throw themselves into the midst of the vast embrace.


	5. All Is Well

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The whole Mazes and Mutants arc was interrupting the flow of the story (tone-wise) so I'm combining the chapters later as a sort of filler book to show what's going on in between chapters. You'll hear more about that later.   
> Sorry for not updating in forever. With COVID and all the other shit going on, I haven't had time to write. Luckily I've got a week-long break from this week, so I'll be updating all my stories and maybe double update if the muses are so kind. Plus, despite many one-man picket lines and stink pellets thrown into people's open windows, I do not own TMNT.

_Raphael often finds himself waking up panting in the dead of night, his sheets tangled around his legs with his covers kicked off the side of his mattress. His hands rest on the empty spot on his mattress that he had instinctively avoided in order to make room for another. Every morning the red cladded turtle wakes up, confused with his heart beating out of his chest, and seconds later he remembers. Not before he frantically pats that empty, uncreased spot on his bed beside him, whispering the name of his brother beneath his breath. He hopes, no, knows it will pass in time. It has to, for the sake of his own sanity. It may be months, even years before that horrifying second upon waking dulls and fades. It will in time, though, and perhaps then he'll remember how to breathe._

_The sheet is frigid against Raphael's palm, not warmed or even creased by the flesh of his older brother. It's been three weeks, he reminds himself as he sits up in his bed, not moving his hand from the gaping spot beside him. Twenty-one days since he'd seen his older brother's eyes flutter closed knowing that they'd never open again. Five hundred and four hours since he'd slotted his fingers against his neck and hadn't felt the pleasant thrum of his pumping blood. Since he'd pressed a chaste kiss to his cooling brow in the solitude of a barn with a damp cloth in his hand to wipe away the dried up, cracking layers of blood. He remembers how eerily cold the stiff flesh was against his dry, quivering lips and how he longed to feel the dull warmth that had resided beneath his cold-blooded skin. He casts his mind to how he'd cradle his slender brother against him and just feel his chest rise and fall as his fingers mindlessly twiddled with the long blue ribbons of his mask._

_As the weeks had gone on and the weeds that grew around the grave grow bigger and larger in number, time had begun to pass until it managed its own type of monotony. Raphael spends his time picking his way through the latest rampaging mutant of the week, following leads on the Foot when he can. The freaks of nature that have lost their will seem much more frightening now that he's alone with no one at his back. His two baby brothers still linger, insist that they're still a team, and they even implement a new leader. The announcement that his immediate younger brother was the new leader was supposed to be a comfort, a sign that their family was moving on. The purple cladded turtle was no doubt still nursing ice packs from the fit of drunken rage that had been unleashed upon him when he'd broken the news to his severely intoxicated brother. And the red cladded turtle doesn't even have the grace to feel guilty. It's hard for him to feel much of anything, even when he's sober._

_The thought of drinking wasn't comforting, Raphael realized. There was no assurance in the bottle. It didn't do a damn thing to hold back his despair or soothe the wounds of his mind and body. He didn't do it enough to be considered an outfighting alcoholic and he'd only blacked out once. And he didn't even know why he did other than the simple fact that with that familiar warmth in his belly he feels just as bad, but it's duller somehow. He can accurately equate it to being blindfolded just as he was about to plummet off of a cliff. The red cladded turtle knows that he just has to deal with it. He would have to move forward; have to see the sunrise and the sunset while Leonardo did not. He was the one who would have to smile and speak and move his tired limbs. He was the one who had to live. Somewhere deep in his mind, the red cladded turtle knew he should be grateful for that, but right now it felt nothing more than a burden. It was hard, and it was tiring, and it hurt more than anything. He didn't.... he didn't want any of this. He wanted his brother. He had only wanted him. And now he had nothing but grief._

_But...Raphael does feel distant as if he were dead too. It takes more effort than he cares to voice to get back on his motorcycle and drive away from the grave, rather than start digging himself a hole right next to it. His passion, his anger, both feel dull when compared to the black hole ebbing it's way through his chest, threatening to consume him. He blames the occasional beer on that. More occasional than he cares to admit. His family and his friends keep insisting that they understand what he's going through, that he's not alone no matter how much he likes to insist on them that he is. But it had been the blue cladded turtle himself that had made absolutely sure that their family and friends would never truly understand the demon he was forced to contend with. When the blue cladded turtle's heart had stopped beating, the very second that it went still in his chest, a part of him was violently ripped out and had been left to wither and die with his older brother on that rooftop._

_The old, fraying cloth runs down the short shaft of the sai, tracing the almost unnoticeable scratches, remembering the bloody fights again and again and again as the emptiness threatens to wholly consume the red cladded turtle. He skims the edges of the prongs, rubs their pointed tips. As of late he's gotten up close and personal with the not so squeaky clean places of his mind and his imagination. And his very own tumultuous mind is what serves as a constant painful reminder... He can't live for his older brother no matter how hard he tries. Living was much worse than dying. He was the one who had to stay and trudge through day after day facing his foes and his own family and friends alike. He just wasn't strong enough, not like his older brother was. Behind his callous attitude and boastful words, he knew that he would never be good enough._

_As the mutant turtle rotated the blade of the sai and began to run the rag up and down, he imagined his brother standing beside him, leaning over his chair as he observed his work. He doesn't take comfort in the certitude that he can hear his older brother rambling on and on about how "a weapon is the extent of a ninja" and how he should "work in tandem with it". He even snorts aloud when he hears his comment dryly about how he was "...a sorry excuse for a defender of truth and justice". The blue cladded turtle always had a great speech drawn up, no doubt practiced in the shower with a bottle of shampoo acting as one of his trusty katanas._

_Master Splinter enters the room, his entire body tense and he leans heavily on his walking stick. Raphael doesn't need to spare him a glance, for he can imagine his expression. The red cladded turtle has hardly_ _spoken since he got back from the latest venture to the surface, in which he'd once again ditched his two younger brothers in favor of busting heads with his human friend, and his master is worried, so he'll try to force it out. The old rodent still thinks that as both his father and his master that he can be cognizant of the enigma that is the red cladded turtle, and before, maybe that was true. Things had been so simple before, comparatively speaking. He finds himself selfishly wishing that they'd never ventured to the surface, that they'd never made enemies, and that they'd just stayed content in their underground world with nothing but algae and worms on their plates. It wasn't much, but at least_ _they were safe. But that was before, now the mutant rodent knows nothing of his second eldest son._

_The very moment that Raphael desperately slotted his lips against those of his own older brother's, swirling his tongue in tandem with his as he feels his soft, yearning moans rumble against his flesh, he knew that he was already too far gone from his family. And though he resents that he must be solely alone in his suffering, he knows better than to think that his situation would somehow be improved if he worked up the courage to tell his family and friends the terrible, sordid truth. The very thought no doubt made the blue cladded turtle roll in his cozy spot in the ground. He can imagine what his deceased older brother would have to say about that: "...this secret must go to the grave with us". His brother always had an irritating modes operandi of having his way._

_"Karai is at last ready to join us. She's being discharged as we speak... We depart tonight," Master Splinter states aloud, at last, his voice distant, cold as it had been for many weeks._

_"What?! Where is he," Raphael barks out, balling up and throwing the rag to the ground as he jumps to his feet. His chest is heaving, his jaw is tight and his unsheathed sai is clenched in a rigid grip at his side._

_The mutant rat scrutinizes the latter with his hardened brown hues as he towers over him, before letting out an exhausted sigh and visibly deflating. "I am almost tempted to force you and your brothers to stay here. I_ _know that it is only my selfish will as a father to hold tight to his sons, to never let you go..." He flinches as if a hand had struck him, placing his paw over his eyes as he let's out a shaking breath and concludes, "But you have as much as a right as I to avenge the ones we've lost to Saki. And I know that if I go alone, it will only be a suicide mission. My way of joining my lost son... It is selfish, I know," He bows his head, clenching his eyes shut as he let's out a low hiss, "I only ask one thing of you, my son..."_

 _"What is it, Sensei? Anythin'! Just...just let me go," The red cladded turtle exclaims hoarsely,_ " _You've gotta let me...!"_

_"No matter what happens tonight, you and your brothers must be the ones to make it out alive. You understand this, yes," Master Splinter inquires firmly of the latter as he settles a shaking paw on his shoulder, "A father should not outlive the ones he brought up into the world, that he cradled to his chest...It is not fair, nor is it right, but it is yet another one of the many cruel jests of the ones that made us. A jest... that I cannot go through again. You must protect them, for you are the one they must look to now...now that...now that Leonardo is gone. You must be all that he was for them and more."_

_Raphael mutters weakly, his emerald green hues going downcast, "But you named Donatello leader, Sensei."_

_"Donatello I trust to lead the team in his brother's stead, but you, my son, I trust to lead the family," Master Splinter declares with the smallest of smiles playing across his lips as he unyieldingly squeezes his shoulder._

_Raphael can only feel bitterness. 'Only because he's gone.'_

———

For the first time in months, when Raphael opens his eyes, there is an occupant in the bed when he opens his eyes. He's lounging back in a creaky wooden chair that leaned up against the wall with a thin throw blanket settled over his lower half. The thick comforter on the bed conceals most of that occupant's lower body, but the back of their head is perfectly visible, even in the dull yellow light streaming from the lone bulb swinging overhead. His gaze softens at the sight of the latter's soft leaf-green flesh with royal blue mask tails dangling down the back of his neck. His eyes trace the intricate details of the tiny scales that knit together in a formal pattern to form the skin. The red cladded turtle can see every scar and recount the battle that marred the flesh with ease - the jagged gash on the lower left side of his neck was from a toy fire truck thrown at the back of his head. The orange cladded turtle, who had been dreaded but playfully renowned later in life for his temper tantrums as an infant, had been responsible for that one. He sits there for what must have been several long minutes, motionless, silent, as he watches the rise and fall of the latter's yellow-platted chest, the twitches of their fingers against the sheet.

During the short period of time that Raphael had grown adjusted to Leonardo sleeping in his bed with him, he had noticed that his older brother always slept on his side, facing outward, the back of his shell inches from pressing against his brother's chest. He always knowingly left enough room for another to spoon against him, press into his warmth. It had been so long, yet he remembered it as if he was fifteen all over again, sneaking into his older brother's room and roughly nudging him awake and giving him a hastily whispered invitation into his bed. In his waking dream, his older brother's hands would tighten around the one's raveled around his waist, pulling him over as close as possible, fearful of waking up without his touch. And at that moment, Raphael lies still, very still, and he just watches the figure in the bed breath. The slow rise and fall of the latter's chest, the barely audible sound of air hissing out of his nostrils.

Raphael leans forward from his chair, inclining his upper half over the bed, being careful not to shift the bed frame too much, trying not to stir the sleeping occupant of the small, cramped bed. His pointless curiosity is just too much to bear, despite knowing all too well that the mutant turtle in his arms is just the result of a few too many drinks along with a nasty hit from Casey's stash. He wouldn't put it past himself to mistake a bundle of blankets or even the very air as his deceased brother, especially in the haze of smoke and cheap beer. But when he pressed his finger against the face of the occupant, tilting it towards him to spare them just a look, a mere glance, he goes pale, lurching, and scrambled away from the bed. He nearly hits his head on the wall from his hard he shoves himself backward, kicking aside the chair as he reclines against the wall.

At that moment Donatello walks in with a small metal tray with a bowl of steaming broth, a plate with crackers scattered across it, and a large glass of water. The purple cladded turtle cocks a brow at him in a questioning manner, before giving a slight shrug and walking over to the side table and delicately setting the tray down. Then he cranes his head towards the door, signaling the red cladded turtle to follow him out. The red cladded turtle hadn't even realized that he wasn't even in his room, not until he laid eyes on the piles of labeled boxes pushed tot he corners and the eerily bare walls. He was in the blue cladded turtle's room and like a ton of bricks, the events of last night come rushing forward into his head. He nods and shakily takes a few hesitant steps forward, shooting the occupant of the bed a quick glance. The pair treaded lightly out of the purple cladded turtle's laboratory, nearly tiptoeing as they go to stand where their other brother and their two human friends are gathered in the pit of the lair.

"Hey, guys. Why don't you sit down? Both of you must be exhausted," April suggests as she uses one hand to tuck a hair behind her ear, while her free hand stays clasped around the handle of the coffee pot as she poured the steaming brew into outstretched mugs," Sorry, let me grab you guys a cup...!"

April waves a hand in the direction of the kitchen and the cabinet creaks open and two coffee mugs hover out and slowly levitate into the living room. Donatello grabs a mug from over his head just as the human girl stops in front of him with the coffee pot. Raphael snatches his mug just as it's about bump into his shoulder and he offers it forward to be filled with coffee with more force than necessary nearly knocking the entire pot out of her hands. She hisses in pain as a few drops splatter onto her fingers, but she manages to keep herself from stumbling forward. The red cladded turtle mutters a quick apology and holds his mug at a proper distance, almost immediately gulping down the entire piping hot cup. The human girl places the pot of coffee down on the makeshift table made of two cinderblocks and an old piece of plywood, then folds her hands together and settles them in her lap.

"So..." Casey starts, his face stony as his fingers tap against the sides of his mug.

April quickly cuts in, keeping her voice light as she gives a tight smile, "I can throw together some breakfast... it's about that time already. The sun should be up soon."

Raphael remarks with a smirk gracing his lips as he knowingly nudges the human boy at his side, "If your cookin' ain't improved I sure as shell hope our immune systems have."

April rolls her eyes and huffs out in annoyance, "Ha-ha... I guess we can just heat up some of those frozen waffles in the back of the fridge."

"Hey, Red, just remember that a smoke alarm ain't a timer," Casey quips.

Michelangelo let's out a low hiss as he sniggers, "Oh, snap! A burn about a burn - "

"Okay, dancing around the subject clearly isn't working. Everyone is acting like there should be a canned laugher playing in the background," Donatello snaps with a sullen look on his face, his eyes narrowed. Then his eyes slacken and after a second his lips tremble as he continues with his head bowed,"...I'm sorry - I'm sorry I... It's... it's just..."

Michelangelo picks up, his voice unusually quiet, almost faltering as he asks the group, "I know how you feel, D," He leans forward with his elbows resting on his knees as he cradles his face in his palms, "Is this real, dudes? I mean it's Leo... It's Leo!"

Donatello lets out a harsh, rattling exhale then lifts his head once more and proclaims, "This is...I can't even begin to... shit..." His hand cups his mouth as his eyes close for a second," He was dead. Dead. There's no doubt about that. W-we all saw it happen. S-saw h-h-him... Saw what that monster did to him. And now he's somehow...b-b-back..."

"Well," April asks worriedly, "Don? Is...is he...? Oh, God."

"It's fine. He's fine. At least as far as I know. I just had to run some tests to be sure that there weren't any physical repercussions to..." Donatello reassures the gathering, before trailing off as his brows furrow and he bows his head, "Shell, I don't know...I don't even know what to call it. He was dead. He was dead...B-b-but somehow he's b-b-back... and he's fine. Aside from some dehydration and an empty stomach, he's healthy as a horse! But I've got him on an IV and I'm keeping a close eye on his vitals."

Michelangelo asks of his older brother, his baby blue hues wide and his head cocked to the side ever so slightly, "Isn't that good, dude? Whatever the shell happened to him it's not going to like reverse or anything?"

The purple cladded turtle replies stiffly, his mouth a thin line, "I...I honestly don't know, Mikey. I'm hoping that when he wakes up he'll be able to give us some answers, but he's out like a light. We barely got him back to the lair before he clocked out," His eyes flit over to the doorway leading into his laboratory and he lets out a long sigh, "So that may be a while. I just - I just don't know... I don't know. Shell, I'm far from used to that - believe me. And, uh, it's scaring me, guys. It's scaring me a lot."

"Me too," The human girl utters in a minuscule voice as she gently settles her hand over the latter's, "It's just...it's too much. "

Raphael demands with a scoff as he abruptly goes to his feet, stomping towards the purple cladded turtle, "What's there to be afraid of? Dude, don't you see," His eyes dart around the room and he stares at the group incredulously before he throws his hands into the air, "It don't matter how or why - like you said just about a damn hour ago! It's a bit of a shock, I know -"

"'A bit of a shock?!' For the love of all that's -" Donatello exclaims shrilly, making the occupants of the room flinch and jump in their seats, "Are you listening to yourself? This isn't a giant alien salamander or a psycho master of ninjitsu that dresses like a can opener - I mean, shit, our lives are pretty damn far from means normal, but there is one thing and one thing only that every living creature is bound to and that is death. He was dead! Dead! There is no coming back from that! There just isn't!"

"But he did, dude," Michelangelo murmurs, "You know there doesn't have to be an explanation for everything, you know? At least not like right away. Isn't there like a saying or something for that? Something like...' When life gives you rotten eggs you don't look the chicken in the beak...?'"

Raphael blinks at the latter, his mouth hanging open for a second, then he slowly utters, "Okay, good try, Mike. I kind of get what you're saying...I guess. Lemme just get on with it before I forget what the shell I was talkin' about cause I was too busy verbally tearin' you a new one," He gives a slight shake of his head and goes on, "Anyway, I think what shell for brains was tryin' to say is that...that it don't matter how or why he's back. He's back and that's all we should give a shit about. At least right now. Believe me, I wanna know, too. But for now, we just need to get Leo standing upright, and maybe then we'll get it out of him. But hell, Don, whatever's responsible I'm sending a damn edible arrangement!"

"We don't need to be putting too much pressure on him, my dudes. If this is how all of us feel, imagine how he feels," Michelangelo points out, "I don't know about you guys, but I'd be pretty far from okay."

April agrees solemnly, "Yeah, I'm with you guys. For now, we need to focus on the problems at hand and give Leo his own time to adjust," She circles a finger around her coffee cup and keeps her eyes focused on the hot puffs of steam rising from the scalding liquid,"...I'm honestly scared to know who or...or what brought him back... I don't know if I want to know. It's like you said, Donnie, we've never faced anything like this before. And I don't know if we should, uh, or really...if we could if we wanted to."

"I feel you on that one, Red. Whatever brought the dude back ain't not gonna be something you'd want to trade blows with. That's for sure," Casey points out as he fiddles with a stray string hanging from his shirt. He blushes in embarrassment when the human girl reaches over with her tiny fingers and ravels them around the string, yanking it with ease and allowing it to flutter to the ground.

The orange cladded turtle holds his coffee cup out for the human girl to refill if, and once she obliges, he proceeds to spoon the majority of the container of sugar into the steaming liquid. Then he splashes half of the bottle of creamer, spilling it over the sides of the mug before he deems his coffee satisfactory and proceeds to slurp at it noisily.

"So are we like forgetting that's he's got fricking glowy hands now, dudes," Michelangelo wonders aloud without having swallowed his mouthful of coffee, and he spews some of the lukewarm liquid over his lap. Catching the napkin that was tossed to him by his purple cladded brother he continues as he tries to rub himself dry, "That's some freaky-deeky stuff."

"Well, he's always been able to use mantras," The human girl mentions with a slight shrug, but she quirks her lips.

"Yeah, but never to this big of an extant," The purple cladded turtle concedes, settling a finger on his chin as he thinks out loud, "Pretty much the only mantra he ever fully learned and mastered was the healing hands."

The red cladded turtle shrugs and states dismissively," So, he got better."

"...While he was six feet under," Donatello questions doubtfully, his expression unimpressed.

"Plenty of time to practice. Now drop the questionnaire, would you? We're all agreein' right here and now not to send our brother to the friggin' looney bin because we drive him up the wall with questions," Raphael insists irritably, his jaw clenching in time with his eyes squinting and hyper-focusing on the latter, "And by 'we' I mean you. So do you got it?"

Donatello raises both of his hands in a placating gesture as he abruptly goes to his feet. Then he announces to the group," Fine. Fine, I guess. I'm going to check on Master Splinter. I'd appreciate it if someone did the same for Leo," His eyes flicker over to his younger brother and he orders him," Go sit beside him for a little while, Mike. Maybe read something to him or just do what you do best - start talking. He'll probably want the company. And don't bug him!"

"Yeah, yeah! I won't! I pinkie swear -"

"We don't have pinkies," Raphael barks out in annoyance as he wiggles all six of his fingers in the air,"Look, why don't you just let me go look after him?"

Donatello objects,"You've been the only one looking after him. And you need sleep too."

Michelangelo wonders,"So like am I going or not, dudes?"

"Yes! Yes, you are," Donatello insists shooing his brother away with a wave of his hand, "The rest of us need to hit the books. We've got quite a bit of research to do and maybe it'll help us get...get our mind off of things."

Michelangelo bounds forward energetically, giving his older brother a mock salute, before making a scrabbling dash for Leonardo's room. Then he skids to a halt, turning on his heel and goes stumbling towards his bedroom. He exits with a towering armful of comic books with crinkling bags of chips and several cans of soda balanced on top. He sways from side to side trying to keep the large bundle of objects in his grip as he makes his way towards his older brother's room. He eases to knob to the side, slowly allowing the door to crawl open and he uses his side to push it open. Immediately his baby blue hues land on the crumpled form of his older brother on the floor. Without even thinking he throws his armful of comic books and snacks into the air and goes to his knees beside his brother, his heart hammering out of his shell as he pants uncontrollably.

"Mmfine," Leonardo mutters, his voice muffled against the carpet as he shakily raises a hand and nonchalantly waves his brother away.

"Wah - dude?! Why'd you nosedive into the carpet," Michelangelo wonders aloud, concerned.

The blue cladded turtle lifts his head and settles his chin on the floor, so he can turn and face his younger brother, his eyes slack with weariness. "It's not like I did it on purpose. I just wanted to see what was in all the boxes and got dizzy," He grumbles pathetically as he purses his lips and darts his eyes away from the latter, "You got soda on my carpet. That's ten knuckle push-ups later, brotato chip."

"'Brotato chip'? You're not like feverish or anything, are you, dude? Not that I don't appreciate the brotherly love puns or anything, but yeah, I oughta check just in case..." The orange cladded turtle offers as he inches a hand forward to rest against his older brother's forehead. He yelps in a high pitched manner when the latter thwacks his hand away, grumbling nonsensically under his breath as he settles his cheek back against the carpet.

The blue cladded turtle whispers, "M'not feverish...just dead tired," He snorts at his morbid joke, then gives a slight shake of his head as he asks, "Too soon?"

"Uh-huh, how about we get you up, okay? The bed is a lot comfier than the carpet, my dude," The orange cladded turtle replies, his voice tense.

"Brotato brotahdo," Leonardo responds simply, his eyes fluttering closed once more as he flops his head back down into the carpet, "Lemme just lay here for a little while. Yeah, just a little while... You're welcome to join me. Aren't you supposed to, uh, like watch me, or something?"

Michelangelo shrugs and obeys his older brother, laying on his shell on the spot of carpet the latter pats in an indicating gesture with his wiggling fingers. He cranes his head to face his blue cladded brother and then he turns on his side, facing him entirely. Almost as if sensing his heavy, curious gaze, the latter lets out a barely audible huff and brings his head upright and inclines his head towards his younger brother. His eyes are so different in moments like these, softer than the orange cladded turtle knew eyes could be. As of late he'd grown all too used to the narrowed and heated glares of his older brothers. His eldest brother's blue hues that held no malice or contempt of any sort, but simple fatigue and a perpetual warmth, were most definitely a welcome sight. He had somehow failed to remember just how blue there were. Full-on Prince Charming, field of cornflower, perfect, cloudless sky blue.

'Someone should name a crayon after this turtle,' Michelangelo thought distantly as he watches his brother's eyelids slowly begin to droop.

Leonardo abruptly closed his eyes, and his head lolled forward with a cushioned fall against the carpet. He mutters, "Mmm, when's the last time this damn thing was vacuumed," Before promptly falling back asleep with a noisy, rattling inhale followed by a similar exhale.

Smirking, Michelangelo eased a hand towards the back of his utility belt, and his fingers fumble around the straps and pockets until they grasp the familiar plastic grip of a pen. He giggles to himself with one hand cupped over his mouth and the other hovering over his brother's unguarded face with the uncapped pen. Then in the blink of an eye, his brother's hand snaps up, his fingers curling tightly around his wrist. The orange cladded turtle shrieks hysterically with his fingers fumbling around the pen before he drops it with a nervous giggle and a strained smile towards his brother. Attempting to keep his mouth a thin line and his eyes hard rimmed and fixed, the blue cladded turtle scrutinizes the other mutant turtle. Under his older brother's suppressing and clearly annoyed gaze, he visibly wilted before his first clipped word was uttered.

Abruptly Leonardo eased his fingers from around the latter's wrist and he began laughing, timid at first, stopping and starting. Then in a matter of seconds, his eyes were clenched shut and he was chortling uncontrollably with his balled fist over his mouth. Michelangelo joins in laughing musically. They both rolled onto the back of their shells and clutched at their sides as tears sprang from their eyes. The blue cladded turtle gasped for air as his breathy, gleeful laughter fades into soft, barely audible giggles that he muffled with his hand over his mouth. Tears drying on his cheeks as his own giggles began to die out, the orange cladded turtle turned his head to his brother, and his baby blue hues crinkle in the corners as he sends him a shaky smile. His older brother returns the smile and lets out one final low chuckle as he gives a slight toss of his head.

"I missed you," Michelangelo blurts out abruptly," Sorry, I...I just... That was weird, I guess."

Leonardo exhales, the air exiting his nostrils a faint hiss as he quietly acknowledges, "No, I know. I...I missed you, all of you, more than you can ever know," He diverts his eyes towards the ceiling and he stares vacantly at it, then goes on, "But the worst of it as that I-I...I didn't even know that any of you were gone. Not really. For me it was like just closing my eyes, being enveloped in total darkness for what could have been seconds, hours, but in that time I had lost all of you...everything. And when I first woke up in that box, I couldn't breathe or see and I didn't even care because I realized that...that..."

"But we're here. You're here, bro. Everything can go back to normal now," The orange cladded turtle urges, his voice cheerful as he gives him a warm smile.

"Yeah, I know. Or at least I think I do. I-I...I don't know," The blue cladded turtle utters as his brows knit together and his mouth formed a thin line.

Michelangelo cocks his head in confusion and questions the latter, "Is something like weighing on your mind, dude?"

_The glass splinters beneath his fist, blood seeping onto the cracks as he pulls away from his bleeding fist. A few pieces of glass fall from the mirror, clinking into the sink._

_Panting, Leonardo traces his finger down the cracked glass, staring hard at his new skewed reflection. "This...this can't be real..." He gulps heavily, "I-I died...I'm dead. I'm dead... I'm dead!"_

"It's the sign of a bad leader; not being able to practice what you preach, but I find myself doing it far more than I care to admit. But talking things out has never been my thing," Leonardo tells him softly, his lips quirking in amusement at his own statement.

The orange cladded turtle replies with a huff, "You and Raph have that in common."

The blue cladded turtle chuckles at that and he slowly begins to sit up, groaning through grit teeth as he leans back on his arms. "I guess I can't lay on the carpet forever. Can you give me a hand up," He asks while sheepishly offering up his hand, and his younger brother practically bounces back up onto his feet. He takes the hovering arm and swings it over his shoulder, and hoists his older brother upwards with a strained exhale and begins leading him back towards his bed," Why don't you go back to your room and get some sleep, Mike? You looked pretty ready to get some shut-eye with me on the floor."

Michelangelo shrugs and informs his brother," I'll sleep when it's my turn, dude. You know you don't have to be such a worry-wart all of the time."

"Mikey, if I didn't worry the world would stop spinning. It's kind of my thing. Some people, er, mutants collect stamps or take up knitting. I worry...a lot and then I worry some more," Leonardo murmurs as he flops onto the bed, not even bothering to untuck the covers from underneath himself. He nuzzles his face against the pillow as he continues under his breath," You guys have gotta stop trying to steal my thunder. Stick to your roles. You're the party guy, Raph is the, uh, cool and rude guy, Don does like, um, machines or something..."

"He does machines?"

"Something like that. Could make a catchy song, you know? But anyway I'm the worry guy," The blue cladded turtle mutters as his eyes begin to flutter closed.

The orange cladded turtle rubs the nape of his neck, keeping his eyes to the floor as he responds uneasily," You weren't here, dude. I think we all kind of just...just split up your usual duties," He swallows thickly and goes on," I...I'm a bad brother, Leo. I should be happy you're back just because you're, you know, you...my big brother. But the first thing that I thought when I realized that you weren't really gone was that... that you could lead us again. Raph and Don they do the best they can, I know they do, but they just don't have the head for it, not like you do, dude. Shell, they're at each other's throats twenty-four-seven over stupid little things like forgetting to take out the trash or wash the shell-raiser and it's draining for all of us."

Leonardo's eyes abruptly popped open but his blue hues held no anger or hurt, but an odd calmness, almost weariness. "It's my job, Mikey. I asked for it a long time ago," He states simply as he tilts his head against the pillow to better look at the latter and he presses his lips together in thought," Sorry, I...I really can't think of a better way to explain it. I guess it's just the way things are for us. We all have our skills and as a team, we have to use those skills where they benefit everyone else the most. It doesn't always benefit ourselves."

Smiling weakly Michelangelo chips in, "You lead, Don does machines, Raph is cool but crude, and I guess I'm just the party dude."

"Not just the party dude," The blue cladded turtle objects, his voice firm, "We mess with you a lot, but that's just what older brothers do, Mike. Believe it or not, it's supposed to be some masculine form of affection, I guess. But I'm happy to have you fighting by my side because you're just as capable in a fight and sometimes better than any of us in some areas."

The corners of his nose and his nostrils crinkle as he beams and says, "So I guess you're saying I'm not entirely useless, huh? Sweet, dude," Then after a beat, he throws his arms around his older brother, hugging him close as he settles his head down his shoulder, "Just tell me one thing: Am I more useful than Raph?"

Leonardo snorts and doesn't deign that a response, keeping his eyes closed tightly.

Michelangelo grabs him by his shoulder and begins shaking him frantically as he squeals, "C'mon, dude! I've gotta know - Just lemme have this one thing to hold over his head," He abruptly unclasps his hands, allowing the latter to flop back down onto the bed. Pouting, he begins poking his older brother's face, "Please...please....pleaseeee! C'mon! I thought I was your favorite. Unless - Is Raph your favorite?! Traitor!"

Leonardo's cheeks turn a bright red and he sputters incredulously, "Wha - No! No! Absolutely not! That's ridiculous... I...I don't rank my siblings!"

"Heh, I guess Raph is kind of on a different level, huh? In terms of relationship, I mean. You two always have been," Michelangelo jests knowingly, nudging his older brother with an elbow.

"And just what are you suggesting?! I-I...I...! He's, uh, you know... He's Raph! And, ugh, that's all I need to say on that subject," The blue cladded turtle groans, trying to hide his horrendously flushed face as he flops his head back down. His voice is muffled against the pillow as he continues, "If I say 'yes' will you let me sleep?"

The orange cladded turtle cocks a brow at the latter and states plainly, "Dude, I was just saying that he's kind of well, you know, a pain in the shell. You two have always butted heads. I don't know what you think I was going for... But whatever," He shakes his head in dismissal. The orange cladded turtle bows solemnly, nodding as he slowly extends his finger forward,"...I'll pinkie swear."

Frowning, Leonardo mentions, lifting his head so that only his eyes are visible, "We don't really have pinkies..."

"So I've been reminded - Uh, green, pudgy, finger-thing that looks kinda like a celery stick swear?"

"Sure, why not," The blue cladded turtle puffs out in annoyance, offering his own finger forward, which the latter quickly links together with his.

The orange cladded turtle gives the latter a slight closed-lip smile, then folds his arms over his yellow platted chest. After a beat, he asks, "Now, if I could just get that in writing - " He's cut short as the latter smacks a hand over his younger brother's face and sends him stumbling back away from the bed with ease," What, dude? Raph is never gonna believe me unless I get you to sign on the dotted line! Shell, you might have to sign in your own blood to convince him, right, Leo? Leo? Leo?!"

Leonardo's head had lolled back to the side and thick rivulets of crimson blood were oozing from his nostrils, running down the side of his face. His eyelids are slack but are still open a hair and his lips move frantically, but no audible noise escapes them. Michelangelo slips his hand under the latter's head, cupping his cheek as he attempts to shift his head slightly forward. Then he bundles up a handful of the sheets and quickly presses the balled up layer of cloth against his older brother's gushing nostrils.

"Raph, Don, April, Casey, help! Help, please! Something's wrong," Michelangelo cries out, his voice cracking as his bottom lip juts out, "Hold on, bro. You're gonna be okay. Everything is gonna be okay! Please, just please...please..."

Leonardo weakly shakes his head and hoarsely utters, "K-Kit...Ki...Kitsune..." Then his head goes entirely limp in his younger brother's hands and his eyes fall shut as a final, surging breath exits him.

April is the first to come racing into the room, her eyes blown wide and her lips parted to let panicked breathes come surging out. She immediately runs her hands down the blue cladded turtle's face, gently patting his cheek as she attempts to even her breathing. She gathers more of the sheets from around his body, attempting to slow the steady flow of blood from his nostrils. Then she gasps as his hand abruptly catches her wrist and then just like that, the vision hit him fast, unmerciful, leaving her fighting nearly unbearable pain. She cries out grasping at her forehead and feels the latter's fingers tighten around her wrist.

April had seen darkness before, the kind that makes our street like an old fashioned photograph, everything a shade of grey. This isn't like that. This is the darkness that robs you of one of their best sense and replaces it with a paralyzing fear. Leonardo is standing eerily stiff and unmoving in the darkness, his blue mask tails waving behind his head in the slow, easy breeze that flits across the space. Abruptly fox waltzes in front of the image of the blue cladded turtle and three tails run across his legs as the creature cocks its head at him. A soft glow emits from the animal, giving warmth and light in the darkness. Then the mutant turtle turns his head and his mask nearly blends in with the penetrating darkness that surrounds them, and his once royal blue hues were a startling dark brown. They were a deep, earthy brown - the color of the earth after torrential rains. But there was something else in them, something frigid and still. Then the turtle's lips melted into a dark, malicious sneer accompanied by a cold laugh. Her eyes dart to a symbol engraved onto his belt made visible by the blood-red threads stitched into place - the symbol of the Foot Clan.

April comes gasping back into reality, and stumbles away from Leonardo, her back slamming against Casey's chest. "Red, what happened? You okay," His voice was clouded with worry.

"I'm... I'm fine," April mumbled, but to her chagrin, she found that her trembling voice did little to convince her friends that her statement was true.

"You look like shit," Raphael comments dryly, holding the wadded up sheet against his older brother's nostrils, keeping his head upright in the crook of his arm. His hand absently rests on the side of the blue cladded turtle's cheek as if he didn't even realize he was doing it, "You better stay down for a little while. Let Don take a look at Leo and you're next in line."

Feeling too weak to object the human girl quickly sat on the edge of the bed, taking the blue cladded turtle's hand, her fingers running over the knuckles. "I had a vision."

"We figured that much," Casey interjects, "What'd you see?"

April hesitates, her hand firmly grasping the blue cladded turtle's as she shakily exhales and utters," Uh, nothing. Nothing that I can remember..." She diverts her gaze and continues," It doesn't matter anyway. We just need to help him now."

'We'll focus on him now, the friend and brother that may leave us yet again, and deal with his future later.'


	6. It Has Begun

Leonardo suddenly felt very dizzy and very...light, like he was no longer attached to his body. What little feeling he had left in his body disappeared, and his vision started to waver. He could still see the dark green blobs of his brothers as his vision blurred, and he still felt the hot, sticky blood gushing from his nostrils as he breathed raggedly. The blue cladded turtle's eyelids slowly slide close, and he blinks them open again breathing slowly in a painful wheeze in unison. His eyelids feel heavy as they abruptly shut and a final panicked breath escapes him as he's thrown into darkness.

The world around the blue cladded turtle becomes a pencil drawing, made up of nothing but thin lines and billowy shadows of charcoal. And the air around him feels stiflingly hot, like flames are roaring in the distance without the violent and colorful bursts of red or orange in the distance. He distantly wonders if the darkness consuming him is in actuality smoke.

"I do not have all I need to raise your precious Shredder yet. Two things remain; his heart, through which new life can flow, and his lost helmet, the Kuro Kabuto, which holds his mental energy," A voice echos in the distance, low, gravely hiss that makes chills run down his spine.

A horribly disfigured arm that's pale with luminous green veins bursts from the seemingly bottomless ground, the fingers' sharp points dig into the inky black plane. The blue cladded turtle cries out as he stumbles back, falling onto the back of his shell. Eyes glittering like emeralds in the penetrating shroud of darkness that surrounded them flash in the distance as the hand drags its limp head upward, it's jaw slack with chipped and missing yellow teeth in its lipless smile. With a low rumbling growl that came from its sunken chest there came a musky scent tinctured with rancid breath. Then two curled blades of bone burst from the arm protruding from the ground with a spray of wiggling maggots and thick, clotted blood that was dark green in hue that flowed dully.

Leonardo hoarsely denies as he stumbles back in the darkness, the voice slowly fading from his hearing, "No...no... It's too soon. It's too much," He shakes his head mutely, then he whispers, "Help me! Someone, anyone, please! Help! No, no... Get away!"

"Leonardo! Cease your struggles, I am here," A feminine voice spoke clearly in the distance like thunder. Brilliant bursts of color penetrate the darkness like paint being splattered onto a blank canvas, exploding into arrays if oranges and reds as greyish green eyes glint in the midst of the fluctuating mass of radiating colors. "You have found me."

The glowing mass of interwoven strands of individual shades of summer fluctuated as it began to take form, turning into the outline of a human woman. Raven hair floated down to gently land on the woman's thin, pale shoulders as her fox-like eyes scrutinized the mutant turtle, and her plump, glossy lips twist into a worried frown. The blue cladded turtle abruptly collapses, panting heavily and he can hear the gentle swish of the woman's robes as she goes to her knees before him. He grits his teeth as he clenches his eyes shut, keeping his head bowed.

"It is gone, Leonardo. For now. He will not lurk in the shadows as long as there is light," Kitsune assures him as she cups his face with her hands, holding it upright. The corners of her lips turned up as she gives him a radiant smile.

"Kitsune," Leonardo rasps out in surprise," Why...why are you here? Why am I here? And, uh, where exactly is...here?"

Kitsune hums softly, her robes swishing behind her as she begins to go to her feet, using one hand to haul him upwards with her and the other to gently graze over his cheek. "It has many names. So many cultures, so many times... But I learned to call it Yomi. It offers neither a paradise nor a hell, rather a place to wait," She pulls her hand away and takes a step back, her painted lips twisting into a deep frown. Her jaw set as she tells him, "And he is waiting. Oruku Saki - The Shredder. Waiting for his new master to call him back. Walk with me. We have much to discuss and little time. No living being can reside in such a place, but you...you are a rare exception because you still have a faint touch of death within you. Deep inside, dark and cold, curling its tendrils inside of you. You will be able to stay longer than most mortals, but still, time is short...far too short. And I sense you have many questions."

"I-I do... Probably too many."

"This is the closest I can reside to the human world when I am not directly connected with you," The woman tells him as she hooks her arm with his and begins to trail down the darkness, the hot wind blowing the long tail of her kimono behind them. Her expression hardens as she explains to him," You're here because this is the beginning...and the end. Your master is fading. His life is like a torch on the top of a frigid, snow ridden mountain top, guttering in the chilling wind. When the great cold comes, he shall pass."

Leonardo paled and he gulps thickly, squeezing the arm intertwined with his. Kitsune stared into his eyes fiercely but his coloring did not look any better than it had before as he spoke in a strained voice," I...I know... He told me," He clenches his eyes shut as he bows his head and sniffs lightly, then he continues, "It was...it was supposed to be me, Kitsune. I gave up my life so that he could live so that he could be the one here to lead. Please, I-I have to know...I have to know that it wasn't for nothing. That after all of this time, after all that we've been through that it wasn't all for nothing... To just lose him for no damn reason -" He rests one hand over his mouth as he struggles to breathe.

The woman was about to speak but paused as she saw the agony in the latter's eyes, pain that he was trying so futilely to withhold. The blue cladded turtle looked so close to breaking now, and she saw his throat hitching with barely repressed noises of fear and hurt.

"The universe is rarely so kind as to give reasoning for all the tragedy there is. But...I do believe there was reasoning in this. It is about righting a wrong. When life is given, it must also be taken," Kitsune says sagely, halting her footfalls so she can turn to face him, her hand trailing down his arm, "I believe you are meant to live Leonardo. Even if it is only for a short while longer."

"...The others, my family and friends, they've already said their goodbyes. They've had the time to let go of him. It's almost as if...as if they already see him as dead," Leonardo's voice cracks and he chokes out,"...I don't find any reassurance in the fact that I get to live. That I have to be the one to say 'goodbye'."

The blue cladded turtle chokes out as he goes on, his hand slapping over his mouth as a tear trickles down his cheek, "I mean, here and now...I...I don't feel alive," He slumps as he admits softly, "I don't. Whatever it is that brought me back, whatever I went through, it left me feeling hollow, empty on the inside. I feel my blood running through my veins, my heart thumping away in my chest and my lungs rise and fall, but I still don't... I sometimes wonder if I'm still dead and if all of this is just some kind of...I don't know. Maybe some kind of screwed up torture in the boiler room?"

"Leonardo... Death is not so easily shaken as life is. For the remainder of your day's amongst the living, I'm afraid that you will never be able to feel the true warmth and comfort that life once gave. Once you die, there is no coming back...not wholly," Kitsune explains to him, her voice thick with emotion as she goes on, "It's cruel, to have felt the strange release there is in death... the peace. And then be taken away from it."

The blue cladded turtle opened and closed his mouth to respond, but no noise came out. Then he, at last, says," I-It is... But I know I have to stay, for all that I have left in this world. I can't just leave them all alone because I'm tired," He sniffs lightly, stubbornly wiping his arm over his damp eyes as he inhales long and slow, "I have to stay. No matter how much it hurts, no matter how it takes from me...I can't leave them like I did again."

"And so you shall. For how long I cannot say," The woman utters as she begins to walk again, and she retakes the arm of the mutant turtle. Her lashes flutter as her lips part to let out an exhausted sigh.

"You spoke of both an end and a beginning. If it is my father's life that must end...what begins," Leonardo wonders aloud as he tilts his head and presses his lips into a thin line.

Kitsune utters solemnly, "You will be the beginning of something new, something better. For it is you who will end Oruku Saki, the Shredder, once and for all. Kavaxas is not what he seems. He will not tolerate being held on a leash for long, so you must be wary of him. It is safer if his true intentions are kept in check," She says her voice grave as the corners of her fox-like eyes crinkled, and she cocked her head at him, "I can feel it on you, Leonardo. The pain, the anxiety...you have so many questions... Ask, and I will attempt to answer them."

"Is it not possible to prevent him from rising in the first place," Leonardo asks of the woman, and a line appears in between his brows as his lips parted.

"I will not discourage you from trying. But I do not see you succeeding."

The blue cladded turtle visibly slumps as he nods in acknowledgment. "And this power that you gave me -"

The woman interrupts as she simpers at him, "Leonardo, I did not give you this power. It is not something that I can simply give. It is only the strength of the spirit manifested into your body. You showed proficiency with this ability long before you came to know me," She flutters her eyelashes at him as she utters in a sweet voice, "It was only made stronger by your demise. Your spirit is like no other's, tainted by death itself, making it harder, colder, and far more powerful. Your abilities are your own. All I did was expand your mind so that you could know the mantras, but the gift...the the pure, unadulterated power that you've come to know...it belongs to you."

"...If I cannot have my father, my sensei, then I shall have the head of the one who took him from me," Leonardo rasps out as coldness clouded his features, his eyes still as stone in their sockets, "And if it all possible, I'll see that he never steps foot in the living world again - "

_Splash!_

Leonardo comes sputtering back to life, sopping wet, flailing his limps around his curled up body as uncontrollable shivers take over his body, making his teeth chatter. Beads of water run down his face as he glares at his orange cladded brother draped over him with an empty bucket in his hand. Snarling angrily, he spits out through his chattering teeth, "G-get o-off...n-now."

Michelangelo takes a cautious step back as he laughs nervously, "Take it easy, dude. Hey, whoa, whoa," He cries out as the latter swings an unsteady, trembling hand to blindly swat at him, "I was trying to help you, dude! It worked didn't it -"

Donatello cuts in, "You couldn't have at least used warm water? We're cold-blooded reptiles, you peabrain," He throws his head back in groans in aggravation, "Let's get a tea kettle going."

"Yeah! I-if g-giving me p-pneumonia was a-a top p-priority..." The blue cladded turtle hisses venomously.

The red cladded turtle runs back into the room with a fresh blanket, draping it around the latter's shoulders, quickly running his hands up and down his arms. "Can we get some more blankets in here? And maybe a heat lamp?"

"I'll get one from storage. We usually keep them there until winter rolls around," The purple cladded turtle responds, departing at high speed without another word.

April barely dodged the mutant turtle, lifting the cup of tea over her head as her eyes widen comically and a startled gasp escapes her lips. "Hey, watch it, Don," She shouts over her shoulder, shaking her head as she makes her way towards the soaking wet, shivering turtle in the bed, "Here, drink this. It's my mother's recipe. She used to make it for me whenever I had a cold. It should help warm you up."

"U-um, t-thanks...I-I guess," Leonardo utters weakly as the teacup is adjusted into his shaking palms. His younger brother keeps one hand underneath the cup, his fingers splayed over part of his cold, quaking hand, running up and down it.

Raphael clears his throat and hurriedly pulls his hand away, nearly stumbling off of the bed as he spouts out, "I'll go, uh, help Donnie with that heating lamp. And get some more blankets."

"Okay, this is a little too much - Guys? Guys," Leonardo grumbles wearily as his eyes dart around the suddenly empty room, and outside his closed-door, he can hear the occupants of the lair running around frantically to complete their assigned tasks.

"Where are all of the damn blankets - And why the hell is this one covered in - !"

"Mikey!"

" - I've got some more hot water going -"

"-ucking rats! They've ruined the wiring! Go and see if we have another heat lamp in your lab!"

The blue cladded turtle slurps loudly at his tea, mumbling into the cup, "Idiots."

———

" _Pass the screwdriver... please."_

_Leonardo gave his younger brother a sheepish smile as he ducks his head, embarrassed, and he quickly shoves the screwdriver into Donatello's waiting hand. The purple cladded turtle snatched it from the latter's hand, his fingers fumbling around the handle as he grumbles under his breath, his lips poised into a tight-lipped frown as he set to work fixing the smoking hunk of metal that had been dumped on his work table. Awkwardly flapping his hands at his sides as he sends the latter a guilty side glance, the blue cladded turtle peered over his little brother's shoulder to watch with fascination as he attempted to fix the toaster. The purple cladded turtle attempts to ignore his older brother, keeping his reddish-brown hues stubbornly fixed upon the smoking toaster before him. His hand tenses with the screwdriver still in position, mid-turn into one of the many screws lined up against the side as he narrows his eyes into slits and clears his throat._

_"Oh, uh..." Leonardo mutters._

_Donatello sets down the screwdriver and runs one hand down his face as he exhales noisily, resting his fingers on the bridge of his snout._ " _Something to say," He demands, his voice high and airy._

_"I-I just wanted to say sorry...again..." The blue cladded turtle stutters his cheeks reddening as he holds his hands up defensively," On my honor, the toast wouldn't come out, no matter what I did! I jiggled the little handle thingy...and I kinda broke that off. I even held it upside down and shook it real good. And I barely touched it-"_

_"Then it caught fire..." The purple cladded turtle finishes wryly, his lips quirking in the corners as he attempts to bite back an amused little smile," Is that's when you poured-," The turtle sniffs the air dramatically,"-orange juice on it I'm guessing?"_

_Leonardo gritted his teeth as he cringes and rubs the back of his neck. After a beat, he lowly utters," I-I...I p-p-p..." He bows his head and mumbles under his breath," I...panicked..."_

_Smirking, Donatello leans forward and cups his hand around his ear as he inquires," I'm sorry, I don't think I caught that. You...?"_

_"Panicked," Leonardo squeaks out, humiliated. A look suddenly overcomes the elder turtle's blue hues, a pathetic stare of utter guilt and shame that was unbecoming of the usual stoic leader facade he tried to maintain. He ducks h_ with a chuckle, waving him off dismissively," _It's no problem. I swear you and your vendetta with the toaster. This is the what, the fourth time you've broken it this month?"_

_"Hey! It's only the third," The older turtle retorts, playfully elbowing his brother's side. Then he purses his lips and wonders aloud as he rubs a hand over his shoulder," You, uh... You won't tell the rest of the guys about this, will you?"_

_The purple cladded turtle snorts as he pats the hand settled over his shoulder and reassures him," Of course not. I'm one of your more reasonable brothers, Leo," Then he adds as he cocks his head in a conceding manner," But maybe the next time Raph and Mikey make me the butt of their new recurring gag-of-the-week think twice before you throw a biting sarcastic comment or two about my love life into the mix."_

_Gawking stupidly at the latter the blue cladded turtle utters in a high pitches voice," Are you...are you blackmailing me?"_

_"Don't be ridiculous. Bit of a loosely used term if you ask me. More like, ensuring our mural interests are met by way of extortion," Donatello corrects the matter knowingly, propping up his head on one arm as he refocuses his attention on the toaster. He uses his free hand to pluck the screwdriver back up as he gives himself a pleased smile._

_Leonardo points out as he frowns at the latter, placing his hands on his hips," You literally just spilled out a very overcomplicated definition of 'blackmail'."_

_"Huh. I did, didn't I?"_

_The corners of Leonardo's eyes crinkle as a smile slowly spreads across his lips and he lets out a brief but musical burst of laughter. His face is lit up like a neon sign as his smile spreads into a goofily wide grin that displays his teeth, and he says in a soft voice," I'm an idiot aren't I?"_

_Frowning, Donatello quickly asks," No. No, of course not. What makes you say that?"_

_The blue cladded turtle gives a dismissive shake of his head as he sighs aloud, still smiling widely," It's nothing. Well, not really. It's just, uh, well..." He lifts his shoulders up and down as he goes on his smile softening like ice cream in the hot sun," I feel like it's been ages since I've been able to, um... No, sorry, uh, it's stupid..."_

_"Leo," The purple cladded turtle states hesitantly," Just because you're the leader of this operation doesn't mean you don't have to right to vent. Shell, I'd say with all you've been through we should be sitting you down twice a week for daily sessions."_

_"Yeah, I know... It's just facing the Shredder, seeing him turned into this...this monster it's... It's bringing up some stuff that I thought I'd gotten over, but really I think I've just, uh, pushed it down. I know you guys would listen, I just - It's not really something I know how to share," Leonardo admits feebly, his eyes downcast as his mouth forms a thin line," But just being here with you guys, talking and laughing, it's making it easier."_

_"Leo, it's okay - "_

_The blue cladded turtle gives him a brief shake of his head, keeping his eyes low as his lips pull into the tiniest of smiles. His blue hues flicker up and he says, "Don, I -"_

_Donatello flinches violently and lets out a startled gasp as his vision goes pitch black and a barely audible metallic hiss resounds in his hearing. Blinking rapidly the purple cladded turtle finds himself standing on unsteady legs in the middle of his laboratory once more, and he sways as his hands fumble to take off the headset adjusted over his head. He brushes his fingers underneath his eyes, surprised to feel wetness and he realizes that underneath the visor of the headset he had shed a few tears. Panting as he stumbles forward, he slams the headset onto his work table, then he sluggishly moved his head upward and turns his head ever so slightly. His eyes narrow and he ducks his head, sniffing quietly._

" _Did you need something," Donatello questions in an inpatient tone, keeping his hands sprawled over the warmed and smooth metal surface of the headset._

_Raphael was leaning against the doorway, his arms crossed over his yellow platted chest and he inquires in a cool tone," New invention?"_

_"Huh? Oh, uh, yeah. Just something to pass the time, you know," The purple cladded turtle answers in a mumble as he runs his fingers down the extension cord attached to the headset, tugging at it curiously, "Did you unplug -"_

_The red cladded turtle holds up the other end wagging it at him and drops it to the floor as he spits out," A little too much time if you ask me. What the hell is going through your head, Don?"_

_Donatello snorts angrily as he seized the cord and begins raveling it in a circular motion to gather it. He abruptly slams the bundled up cord onto the table and his jaw clenches as he replies," What else am I supposed to do? Huh, Raph? Do you have some of your usual dry wit to offer as half-assed advice?"_

_Raphael's brows raise and a muscle in his neck ticks as he asks in a low voice," Sounds like you're eating out of my bowl with this new_ ' _tude of yours."_

_"I'm not thick-shelled like you, Raph. Okay? You are angry all of the time and I don't even know why - and I know that you don't either. But somehow you never feel! Not really," The purple cladded turtle exclaims," You bottle everything up and all that pressure builds and you just explode because you don't let yourself feel. Not until you have a few too many bottles..."_

_"So what? You're pissed at me because I don't have the usual textbook coping methods? Because you think I'm some sort of what, basket case?"_

_Donatello shouts in response," I'm angry because he's gone! He's gone! And you expect all of us to be like you. To just push it all down, when we can't...I can't, Raph," He lets out a shaking breath and he falls silent for a moment, before uttering in a quiet voice," I've tried...I-I have. But I just...can't. Even without that damn machine, I see him everywhere. I see the spot where he used to sit and the creases that are still embedded there. I see his stupid comic books laying around the lair out of their plastic with their pages wrinkled. And I see his katana blades on the rack in the dojo, already gathering dust... A-and... I just -_ "

"-just can't brush this off," Donatello barks out as he adjusts the thermometer under his brother's tongue, holding it upright.

"I don't need to be coddled," Leonardo grumbles around the thermometer in his mouth, and he earns a flick to the forehead from the latter. He flinched and sputters indignantly poking his tongue out around the thermometer,"...Did you just flick me?"

Donatello reprimands flicking him once more and he has to purse his lips to hide his smirk," Shush! Don't talk. I need an accurate reading."

Michelangelo makes a long face as he approaches his eldest brother with a damp washcloth in his hand and he sits on the right side of his bed and begins sponging his nostrils with it. Leonardo gently settles his hand over his brother's and fumbles his fingers underneath the wet cloth, pulling it from his brother's grip. He gingerly rubs the cloth up and down his face, trying to mop away the quickly drying layers of blood.

The purple cladded turtle pulls the thermometer from his mouth and frowns at it as he announces," You have a fever. It's three degrees higher than usual."

"A small fever then. And it's probably because of that damn heat lamp," The blue cladded turtle corrects in a huff, setting the cloth down in his lap. He insists in an irritated voice," I'm telling you guys I'm fine. I am. It was just a little nose bleed."

"It was like the Niagara Falls of nosebleeds, dude," Michelangelo says in a concerned voice.

Casey agreed as he raised his brows at the blue cladded turtle, throwing a hand in the direction of the blood-soaked rag. "Yeah. We're gonna have to like burn your sheets, yo. Or like dye them cranberry."

Donatello jerks his head in the direction of the human, mumbling irritably under his breath. He turns his head to his immediate older brother and quickly orders him, "Go get an ice pack, Raph. Then we need to get his stubborn shell to lay down for a while reduce the blood pressure in the blood vessels of his nose, to discourage any further bleeding," He snorts as he crosses his arms over his yellow platted chest, "You'll be the one to watch him because you're the only one that can match his stubbornness."

"Hey, I'd say it exceeds it." Raphael for once didn't question him and darts out of the room so fast that the torn and frayed tails of his red mask are a blur behind his running legs.

April presses her lips together and lets out an exasperated sigh as she shoves aside the other human, taking a seat on the side of the blue cladded turtle's bed. She sets a hand on his shoulder blade, her thin, pale fingers lingering on the side of his neck as she tells him in a soft voice," T...This is a lot for you, Leo. I get that. And I know it would be a shell of a lot easier if we all just pretended that things can go back to the way they used to be without any repercussions or even just a few setbacks," She squeezes his shoulder giving him a small, reassuring smile," This is one of those setbacks, but you have to understand that...that we aren't going to let you down. We're going to be at your side every step of the way so that none of us has to be left alone."

"Guys... April, I'm sorry and you're right, you are. I-I don't want any of you worrying about me -"

"Well, you're doin' one hell of a job, Fearless. I hate to tell you, but there for a brief spell, you were sleepin' with the weeds. So, yeah, we're gonna be a little jumpy for a little while since we're seeing you walkin' and talkin' without your stomach growlin' for brains or nothin'," The red cladded turtle scoffs dryly, grabbing his brother's jaw and forcing his head back as he gently lowers the bag of frozen peas over his frozen nostrils, "And yeah you're a little pale but you ain't rottin' or tryin' to snap your teeth at me or nothin'. So I'm gonna take a gander and say your not a zombie -"

"He's not," The orange cladded turtle sighs in relief, his shoulders hunching as he exhales loudly, wiping off his forehead with his hand.

The red cladded turtle uses his free hand to cuff his younger brother on the snout, not even turning his head to do so, before ordering his older brother in a thick, stern voice, "Now, lay down, button your lip and listen to our resident discount doc's orders, huh?"

The purple cladded turtle cocks his head towards the door and tells the group, "C'mon, guys. We've got a lot of research to do -" The orange cladded turtle crosses his arms and blows a loud, moist raspberry at the latter, "And you've just earned yourself two extra volumes to comb through!"

"Auggghhh," Michelangelo groans obnoxiously.

Donatello narrows his gaze at the latter, then turns to his red cladded brother, questioning him in a serious tone, "You'll watch him in here?"

Raphael nods, and with that, the two turtles and their human friends depart. Leonardo puffs out his cheeks as he says, "So..." His voice muffled under the makeshift ice pack. He tentatively reaches a hand forward, taking his brother's wrist and lowering the hand gripping the bag of frozen peas," Raph?"

"You're sure that you're fine? That there ain't nothin'...you know," The red cladded turtle questions dubiously, "And don't...don't lie to me. Don't try and make me feel better, alright? I don't think a damn thing could help there. Short of getting a time machine and erasin' the past three months. Just...Just tell me if-if I shouldn't even bother gettin' my fuckin' hopes up, huh.."

"Raph. Raph, don't do that," Leonardo croaked sternly. When the other turtle glowered at the floor, his jaw clenching tightly and did not lift his gaze to him, the blue cladded turtle cleared his throat and went on louder and more clearly," I'll be perfectly honest, I just can't deal with it right now. I'm fine. Raph, I..I'm fine."

Raphael suddenly peaked his head up, his blazing emerald eyes glaring at his brother as his lips pull into a thin line. Then he reaches one hand forward, gently settling it against his older brother's cheek and soon his other hand copies his movements, and he cradles his brother's face in his hand. Hands still lightly cupping Leonardo's cheeks, he gently pulled him forward his lips parted hesitantly as he cocks his head to the side. The blue cladded turtle tensed in his arms and also hesitantly pressed forward. Awkwardly their lips touched, but slowly the red cladded turtle slides his arms down his neck, his thick, muscular arms wrapping around the latter's waist, tugging him closer as his moan rumbles against his lips. The red cladded turtle teasingly bit at his lip and eagerly slipped his tongue in as the latter gasped in surprise and jolted against him. Then the blue cladded turtle hesitantly settles his hands against the latter's chest and gently pushes him away, his head bowed as his eyelashes bat frantically and he gulps thickly. His tongue nervously darts over his lip and he folds his hand over his lap.

Raphael stared at the blue cladded turtle, confused, as they stared at one another, lips moist and parted, their faces an inch apart. The blue cladded turtle winces, darting his eyes away as he abruptly scoots back a few inches from the latter, his shell lightly thumping the headboard of his bed. He sits upright, bringing his knees to his chest and he lifts his hardened gaze to meet his younger brother's again, his blue hues slack and dull. The red cladded turtle cocks his head at him in a questioning manner, opening his mouth to demand an explanation when the latter suddenly reaches a hand forward, clumsily tangling his fingers around his hand.

As an answer, Leonardo simply shakes his head, and he hesitantly pulls his hand away. "...Raph, I'm sorry. I am. But I don't...I don't think I'm ever going to be the same again. I wish I could be," He utters, at last, his voice coming out as choke. He gulps thickly, "But I don't think that there's any coming back from this, not in one piece anyway. There's something missing from me - a piece of myself and it's left me hollow, cold. And I don't want to...I don't want to..."

"You're not fine. Far from it, I think," Raphael concludes with a stiff, knowing nod as he barks out at the latter, "But you can be. You told me before all that time ago that you didn't you'd ever be the same again, and you were just going to throw in the damn towel because it got too hard. But I didn't let you give up because you may have me beat in a lot of things, but I can guarantee that it isn't in the stubbornness department. I sure as hell ain't lettin' you give up now, brother."

"...What if I can't? What if I'm too damn tired to fight?"

Stiffly, Raphael snaps his head up at the sound of his voice, his emerald green hues blazing as he asks him in a grave tone," You ain't giving' up, okay? If...if I have to watch you..." He trails off, his mouth twisting violently as he runs a tired hand over his face," I...I can't. I can't do that again. I just...fucking...can't, okay? You...you being gone it was - shit. It was...It was like..."

Leonardo's brows scrunched together in concentration as he parted and closed his lips in an attempt to find an adequate answer. "Raph -"

"Don't. Just...just don't, alright? There isn't a damn thing that you can say that'll -"

"Raph...I..." The blue cladded turtle began in a timid voice. He sighs aloud," I... You're right."

The red cladded turtle goes slack-jawed and fixes his gaze on his older brother as he mutters, bewildered," Wha - Did you just say -? I've gotta have somethin' in my ears."

Leonardo exhales noisily through his glared nitrile and frowns deeply at his younger brother as he repeats himself," You're right. Is that what you want to hear?"

Raphael laughs dryly, jerking his head towards the latter, "Of course...Of course, you'd literally have to keel over and die and come back to admit for once that I'm right!"

Leonardo lifts and drops his shoulders as he goes on in a weary voice," I don't know, Raph. I wish I did... But, shit, I don't. There isn't exactly an instruction manual on digging your way out of your own grave and the side effects. Hell, I wish I had it in me to just lie to you, just so you and the guys could sleep a little easier at night."

Raphael scoffs," You're too damn honorable. Always have been."

"And you've always been an insensitive jack-ass," Leonardo retorts cooly, his lips quirking in amusement. His tiny smile slackens as he continues, "Would you feel any better if I tried to lie to you - "

"Nah. Because I'd know right away because you can't lie for shit. I knew you too damn well and lemme tell you, big brother, you have too many stinkin' tells."

"Is that Raphie-Boy speak for: I missed you," The blue cladded turtle asks with a twinkle in his eyes as he gives the latter a knowing smile.

The red cladded turtle shrugs and meets the smile with a slight upturn in his lips as he crosses his arms over his yellow platted chest. "A loose translation, but sure... Why not?"

"C'mon! Dead, again! Ughhhh," A voice screams in despair in the distance, and there's a heart-pounding thud as something is thrown against the television screen, "No! No - ! Shit...!" Another loud thud and both turtles flinch.

Raphael snorts. "Mikey and his stupid games, man."

"...Yeah, this isn't going to work," Leonardo huffs out in annoyance as he attempts to sit up, snatching away the frozen bag of peas and tossing it across the room.

"Wha... C'mon! Get back in bed, Leo! Leo," Raphael replies in return, throwing his head back and groaning in exasperation.

Leonardo narrows his eyes and kicks off his blankets, allowing them to pool around his ankles on the floor as he jumps to his feet. Raphael stands in time with him moving an arm in front of him to block him, but he yelps as the latter seizes his arm and twists it behind his back, and shoves him off to the side as he lets out an irritated growl. His blue hues are squinted into barely visible slits as he yanks open his door and goes stomping into the middle of the pit that dips down to form their living room. A vein in his forehead throbs as his lips curl into a toothy snarl as his eyes dart around the sitting area, taking in the empty pizza boxes, the crumbs scattered all of the floor along with stale pizza crusts and comics scattered haphazardly on the floor.

"Leo," Michelangelo exclaims, beaming at his brother, "Wasn't Raph supposed to watch you?"

Raphael tramps into the room, clutching at his arm with his nostrils flared as he shouts, "It's kinda hard to babysit when the baby doesn't want to get sat on!"

"What the fu - Tiger Claw is out there with a dragon, and all you can think of doing is sitting on your ass and playing 'Super Commando 3'," Leonardo snaps angrily as he goes to stand off to the side of the television.

The orange cladded turtle pokes out his tongue as he twists the controller in his hands, squinting at the television screen. "Chillax, Leo. Hot Head isn't going anywhere."

"Well, then," The blue cladded turtle utters as he crosses his arms over his yellow platted chest, "You have time to clean up all of your comics and empty pizza boxes. In fact, clean up now or no television for a week."

"A week," Michelangelo shrieks in horror as he whips his body around to face his older brother. He turns his head to the red cladded turtle begging pathetically, "Raph, back me up, bro."

Raphael snorts elbowing his older brother in the side as he mockingly replies to his younger brother, "You better listen to him, Mikey. Leo hasn't even been back a day and he's already risen to the rank of..." He waves his hands in an arc in front of himself,"...sensei."

Donatello comes racing into the room with April at his side, yelling in alarm, "Guys, the motion sensors picked up a couple of mutants. They look to be heading toward Shredder's old lair," Then his eyes widen at the sight of his eldest brother and he throws a hand into the air as he dumbly asks, "What the - Raph? You had one job! Leo, I'm going to have to insist you get back in bed -"

Leonardo ignores him as he cuts in abruptly, "Better check it out. Raph, Mikey, since you two dolts have nothing better to do, go track the signal."

Raphael sputters as he shoves an arm against the older turtle, surprised when he doesn't even flinch or wobble from his position," Wha - No! Ain't no way I'm going on patrol duty. I haven't had to do any leg work for weeks."

"Do it now, Raph," The blue cladded turtle barks out irritably leaning closer as his jaw tightens.

Pointing at the latter accusingly, the red cladded turtle yells back, "Hey, why don't you get off my -"

Leonardo twists two of his fingers together and slams them into the middle of the latter's yellow platted chest, hissing under his breath as the two fingers glow dully, "Kizetsu!"

Raphael tenses up as the same dull glow spreads over his skin and his eyes widen and his teeth grit as he goes completely still and a creaking noise escapes him as he thuds onto the back of his shell. Paralyzed, the red cladded turtle grits out in surprise as his jaw barely moves to let the words escape, "What...did...you...do...to...me..?"

"Just a simple little stunning mantra. It was weak so it'll only last a few seconds," The blue cladded turtle responds as he stares down at the latter, smirking openly.

Casey swoops his arm around Michelangelo as he chuckles, "Whoa, Sensei Leo is kinda strict."

"He's...not...the...sensei," Raphael snarls as he shakingly rises to his full height, gripping the back of his head as he winces in pain. He concedes with a grunt turning his head to his older brother, "Fine. Ugh. Patrol it is. C'mon, Mikey."

Leonardo rolls his eyes as he motions a hand at his two younger brothers, ordering them both sternly, "Stealth and recon only," As they both depart he turns to his two human friends and his remaining brother, giving him a small, timid smile as he rubs at the back of his neck," Sorry, Don... for undermining your authority. You've got to really watch those two or - Oh, sorry. I'm preaching. It's a bad habit,0 He awkwardly clears his throat and continues, "Uh, I understand that you're leader now?"

"Uh, yeah. I guess," Donatello replies with a jerk of his head as he shrugs, "Only because you weren't here. Now that you are -"

The blue cladded turtle adds with pride in his voice, "No. You've still got a lot to learn, that's for sure, but you have the right mindset for it. And you're already the brains of the operation, "He pats his brother's shoulder and says, "I know you'll do great. I'm proud of you."

"We all are," The human girl jumps in.

The purple cladded turtle laughs nervously as he tells him, "Well, I don't know about that. I used to think so to, you know...that I would be a good leader, but that was a long time ago. Things have changed. I've changed. I don't want this anymore because it still feels like it, uh, belongs to someone else," He goes on as he tentatively adds, "And, shell, if it wasn't for April constantly threatening to pin the guys to the ceiling I wouldn't ever be able to get them to do squat. It's...it's kinda hard to lead a team when all of the much needed mutual respect isn't exactly there...because it already belongs to someone else. Someone else who's much more deserving.

April chuckles in an ungainly manner as she admits in a strained voice," And a little of fear is needed, and Don is not exactly the most intimidating figure."

Casey snorts, "You've got that right, Red. He couldn't scare a turtle from its shell, and that's a good chunk of the team right there, dude," He adds in a lower voice, darting his eyes away, "And we kinda...kinda missed you as the leader, Leo."

Donatello quickly flips the latter the bird before turning his attention back to the Now that you're back I was kind of hoping that you would, you know...take over."

"No, Don. I'm not taking this from you -"

"Leo, listen to me. You won't be taking it from me because I am happily giving it to you," Donatello assures him as he raises his hands and shakes his head frantically. He lowers his arms and goes on, "You can be very thick sometimes, you know that right? I may be the brains of the operation, but you're the heart. Despite Raph and Mikey's collective callous attitude because they can't behave like brain dead pigs anymore, they know, well, we all know that...we need you here as our big brother and our leader. It's just who you are. The job is yours...if you want it. But I won't force you to take it back."

"Hmm. It's who I am, huh? Don...I don't think I can ever...be like that again..."

"Just give it some time, huh? Think about it," The purple cladded turtle insists.

The blue cladded turtle concedes with a slightly annoyed sigh, "Yeah, okay. I just don't think it's something I even need to think over."

" _Leonardo, my son, please. Let us not talk about me. Let's talk about you," Master Splinter declares leaning heavily on his staff as his warm brown eyes surveyed his son,"Do you know why you are the leader of this team?"_

_Leonardo answers awkwardly as he scrunches his lips together off to the side, "Um, yeah, because I asked to be," Deflating he goes on, his voice quiet,"...You said it wasn't because of my skills."_

_Master Splinter sighs heavily as he admits, "I said that only to temper your ego at the time. I knew even when you were a small boy that you would one day grow up to be the leader of this team," He takes his shoulder within his paw as his face went blank," And when I pass on to be like a father as well."_

_The blue cladded turtle screwed up his face as he inquires worriedly, "Pass on? What are you talking about, Sensei?"_

_"Leonardo, if I can only impart one piece of wisdom that will remain with you forever, remember, giving guidance to your brothers and friends does not come from here," The mutant rat presses a single finger against his chest as he imparts upon him, "It comes from here."_

_"...Master Splinter, there's something I need to tell you. I know it sounds crazy. And shell I sometimes wonder if I've finally gone off the deep end but I've been having these dreams," The blue cladded turtle discloses tentatively,_ " _I...I think..."_

_"My son?"_

_In his mind, Leonardo can see the serrated edges of the blades of twisted bone, the explosion of crimson across the starry night sky as he went plummeting from a rooftop. There were reasons why the blue cladded turtle couldn't sleep at night; things he couldn't explain to his family or friends. He hoped they were nightmares. They never felt like dreams, or as his human friend had often suggested, visions. Sometimes he was a fifteen-year-old mutant with wide, terrified eyes being thrown into mortal combat with the monstrous man for the very first time, his swords trembling violently in his hands as he crosses them in a defensive position in front of his yellow platted chest. Other times he was seventeen, older and broader with tired, weary eyes that didn't match his youthful face. He would watch helplessly as a new, more terrifying being, a monster twisted and mutilated by mutagen, tore his future self open and cast him off of the same rooftop they'd fought that first time so long ago. Even more frightening, he started seeing the nightmarish vision from the Shredder's eyes, for felt himself live and breathe through the monster, feeling his rage fester and boil like an_ _infection ripping through a wound. The blue cladded turtle wished it were a dream every time. But instead of waking up, and living his life as though they were, he would close his eyes and it would start all over again._

_Leonardo lifts his head as the color drains from his fast, turning the color of leaf left to die in the cold of a snowbank. "Sensei..." The mutant turtle gives voice to as his eyes went round and flickered with doubt._

"Huh," Leonardo asks dumbly as he's abruptly jolted from his thoughts.

April blinks at him worriedly, before repeating himself, "I was saying that since you're forgoing bed rest that we should go ahead and start preparing for -"

"-I'm telling you, we go in all pucks blazing," Casey abruptly shouts, jolting the mutant turtle's from his thoughts.

Donatello barks back, "And I'm telling you, Hot Head is too powerful for that!"

"All right, enough," Leonardo yells at the pair, "We wait till Raph and Mikey get back for our next move."

A voice chokes out loudly from the doorway, and a hint of sadness in their voice makes it quiver, "You always did like bossing people around."

The blue cladded turtle whipped his hand around, his jaw going slack as his eyes meet those of the kunoichi. Her dark lashes brimmed heavy with tears; her hands clenched into shaking fists and a lone tear tracked down her pale cheek.

After Raphael had delivered Karai the news about the sudden resurgence of Leonardo, the livid kunoichi had automatically assumed that the mutant turtle was playing some kind of sick joke on her. The enraged woman slammed her fist into his abdomen in response to his rushed words, armored fist and all. Once the red cladded turtle had picked himself up from the ground in front of her new makeshift base, he stomped back to the enraged kunoichi and argued until he left with his hands in the air defensively and a tanto blade to his throat.

Leonardo, shocked, whispers in a low, rumbling voice,"...Karai..."

And he slowly steps forward his hands outstretched towards her, when abruptly his mouth twists and his blue hues blink a milky white as his hands emit a dull glow,”...Honō...”

A terrible, destructive urge pierced straight through the blue cladded turtle’s entire being, and then burst forth like white-hot fireworks. The mutant turtle was gesturing, urging the flames higher and higher with broad sweeps of his arms and the kuniochi last mouth fell open in shock as the flames surged towards her.


	7. Cat People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thanksgiving 🦃🍁🍽  
> I do not own TMNT  
> Sorry for long hiatus!!! Guys, next time I wait this long I want you to give me a nudge and comment to remind me if I haven’t updated in more than three weeks.

“Karai," Casey shouts in alarm over the roar of the flames.

April jumped in front of Karai with a pained yell as she shoved one hand forward, and the flames split down the middle blasting in opposite directions. Donatello and Casey both dropped to the floor, crossing their arms protectively over their heads as the heat of the flames loomed overhead. The swirling bursts of fire abruptly dissipated as Leonardo's arms fell to his sides limply, his heavy-lidded eyes swiveling around the room to land on Karai again. His lips twitched at the corners as they slowly pulled to form a thin, bloodless smile that stretched across his face, but didn't reach his stone cold eyes. Then he brought one arm upward again, as his free hand slowly curled its fingers around the hilt of one of his katana blades. He parted his lips to utter another incantation. And in that moment, the blue cladded turtle's eyes were the color of a dark rust blooming across rain washed steel, and narrowed into slits.

Karai coughs harshly, slowly lowering the arm raised protectively in front of her face to yell,"Well that's new! I'm guessing I shouldn't have come in unannounced?"

"Yeah, maybe," Donatello replies with a conceding cock of his head, cringing as he heard the familiar metallic hiss of a katana exiting its sheath.

"Still, a tad bit of an overreaction, don't you think," The kuniochi quips wryly, her teeth gritting into a strained smile.

April flinches violently, her eyes squeezing shut as her fingers twitch against her temples. "Don! S-something isn't right! H-his head...t-there's something in...in his head b-but I can't...!"

_Then the mutant turtle turns his head and his mask nearly blends in with the penetrating darkness that surrounds them, and his once royal blue hues were a startling dark brown. They were a deep, earthy brown - the color of the earth after torrential rains. But there was something else in them, something frigid and still. Then the turtle's lips melted into a dark, malicious sneer accompanied by a cold laugh._

'My vision,' The human girl thinks internally, her hand slowly sliding down the side of her face as her lips part in silent shock. 'No, no, this can't happen - Not here, not now! I won't let it -'

"Leo, don't make me do this... Don't make me - I don't want to do this," April shouts as she throws her hand in front of herself.

The blue cladded turtle's lips are parted ever so slightly, then they slowly press to form a tight smirk, his cold brown eyes settling on her. He thrusts his katana in front of himself, before slowly easing the flat of the blade to rest in a straight line in front of his chest, his thick green fingers twitching in anticipation around the grip. He then raises his own arm in front of himself and he slowly spreads his fingers apart, a dull glow illuminating from the tips and spreading to his palm. He parted his lips to utter an incantation.

"April! No - No, Leo! Don't do it - _Stop_ ," Donatello begs, his eyes widening.

"Watch it, O'Neil," Karai commands as she heaves her tanto blade from its sheath and charges at the mutant turtle.

Karai spins her tanto in her grip, slamming the pommel of the small blade into Leonardo's knuckles making his grip on his katana slacken as he cries out in pain. Donatello takes the opportunity, diving sideways, and slams into his older brother, making them both roll in a tangle of limbs across the floor. Then he ravels his long, sinewy arms around his middle to confine the latter's arms to his sides as they both crumpled on the hard concrete floor. Leonardo's breath escapes his lips in a feeble wheeze, and he shakily lifts his head, craning his neck to the side to face the hulking mass of purple cladded turtle keeping him confined to the ground. His blue hues stare at him wide and bewildered, his lips parted ever so slightly to let out weak, rattling breaths of exertion due to the substantial weight pressing down onto him. The purple cladded turtle's reddish brown hues glinted in the dull light above and he begin to shift his weight so that he was sitting on the edge of his brother's shell, still pressing his face into the ground and keeping his arms trapped to his sides.

"D-Don?"

Donatello nervously licks his lips as he questions dubiously,"L-Leo...? Y-you have to stop... Do you hear me? S-stop...!"

Leonardo sputters out, confused,"S-stop? Stop what, Don? You're the one about to squeeze me out of my shell!"

The purple cladded turtle blinks, then he slowly eases his weight off of the latter, and he hurriedly goes to his feet, standing over his dazed brother for a second, before he offers his hand to him. The blue cladded turtle glances upward with round eyes and a slight frown on his lips, then he reaches his own hand forward, allowing himself to be hauled upward by his younger brother with a grunt. The red haired girl exchanges a knowing look with the purple cladded turtle and she raises two fingers to rest against her temple, then she allows her eyes to flutter close. Giving the slightest flinch, her breath hitches and her eyes snap open, before she directs her gaze to the purple cladded turtle and she gives a him a slow, deliberate nod. Exhaling in relief, the younger turtle seizes his older brother's shoulders and hunches over slightly to meet his unfocused gaze.

"Leo? Leonardo," Donatello demands squinting at the latter as he surveys him. Donatello held onto Leonardo's broad shoulders with both hands, giving him a firm, but gentle, squeeze of reassurance

Leonardo blinks rapidly, his mouth agape. "I-I didn't...I didn't do that. I-I couldn't have done that... Don?"

"I-I...It's fine. Do you hear me? It's fine," The purple cladded turtle assures him,"You're fine."

The red haired girl confirms as she reaches a comforting hand toward the blue cladded turtle,"Whatever it was...it's gone now. I don't sense any other presence from you."

"N-N...No," The blue cladded turtle denies pathetically, jerking away from his brother and human friend. His head hangs low as he slowly shakes it back and forth,"N-No, it's not fine...I'm not f-fine! S-something o-o-or someone was i-in my head! I-I could f-feel I-it...a-and...I-I couldn't do a damn thing! I-I just...I just lost control!"

The purple cladded turtle reaffirms as he holds his hands up in a placating gesture and he takes a few cautious steps towards him,"Alright, let's start small then. You're in control now, right? This is you right now...this is your hand that I'm holding, okay? And you feel that," He frantically gropes his fingers around his older brother's hand, holding it up in his eye-line as he intertwines their thick green fingers together, and clenches them together in a crushing grip. The other mutant turtle takes an indrawn breath and winces, then he gives an affirmative jerk of his head,"Alright then. Do you see now? This is you, Leo. You're here, right now, with me. This is your hand in my own, and you feel it - you feel me. You're in control, right?"

"Yeah - Uh, yeah, I think so. I think so, Don," Leonardo repeats with a slight tremor in his voice and his grip on his brother's hand contracts instinctively. He stood in a sort of daze for several moments, his eyes fixated on his younger brother's reddish brown hues.

Donatello swallowed, his throat bobbing, and looked down at the hand that he was holding onto so protectively. "Leo? Leo?"

The blue cladded turtle hurriedly pulls his hand away, sniffing as he rubbed a hand over his mask, now a little damp around the eyes. With a deep breath, he forced a small smile on his lips as he utters,"You're right. Of course you're right...always are, huh?"

The purple cladded turtle laughed weakly and without thinking he brought a hand to his brother's face, swiping his thumb on the underside of his mask. He nods quietly, jerking his arm back down to his side quickly as he claims,"And don't you forget it. Just believe me, okay? Believe in me...in us...whenever you doubt yourself."

"Yeah. Yeah, okay," The blue cladded turtle chokes out thickly. His eyes feebly flicker over to the kuniochi and he goes on,"Karai, I -"

The kuniochi cuts him off with a swipe of her hand,"Stop — Just stop it, okay? I can't listen to your usual martyr shtick, not right now."

"I could have hurt you - all of you - ! If I hadn't been stopped...!"

Karai gently pushes aside the purple cladded turtle, and stands tensely in front of the blue cladded turtle for several moments. Leonardo wilted under the human girl's stare, his shoulders visibly slumping and he stubbornly keeps his head bowed. The kuniochi abruptly steps close with her arms open and embraces the mutant turtle, settling her chin on his shoulder. With a hitched breath the blue cladded turtle melted into the tight hug, and the latter's slender hands stroked his shell gently. She buried her face deep into his neck, breathing in his scent of sharp mint and pine, and she closed her eyes once she felt the latter's large green fingers stroking the spiky tips of her hair. The mutant turtle winced when he felt little droplets of water dripping down his neck like hot oil and his own vision begins to blur with the sheen of tears.

Karai slowly pulls away, her arms still hooked around his shell and she smiles wetly, her brown eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "I...I didn't think I would ever see you again. I-I...I was so afraid and I wanted to tell you - I want to tell you..." She raised one black gloved hand to his cheek, cupping it as she stroked her thumb on the underside of his jaw and she continues quietly,"God, I'm bad at this. But I just...I just wanted to tell you that, well, that I..."

"I know," Leonardo voices out through his strained laughter,"I won't make you say anymore."

The kuniochi snorts dryly, stepping away from the mutant turtle as she quickly wipes the underside of her eyes. "Don't ever do that to me again."

———

Karai sits on a stool at the kitchen counter and raises her cup to her painted red lips, softly blowing air against the surface of the hot tea. The liquid ripples and steam rises in tiny puffs as she continues to blow cool air into the cup, and after several seconds she takes a tiny sip.

Her hands gently grip the cup to her chest, and she tells her blue cladded friend,"I'm sorry that I didn't come to see you sooner. Much has happened since you... you've been gone, and I am currently dealing with the aftermath. And I was trying to tell you before I was, uh..." She quirks her lips and goes on,"...interrupted, someone new is trying to take over the Foot Clan. And he's after the Kuro Kabuto."

Casey pushes away his cup of tea, wincing as some of the scalding liquid sloshes over the side and splashes over his bare fingers. "So what," He demands as he frantically shakes his burned fingers,"Let the bad guys squabble over Shredder's stupid hat!"

Raphael abruptly stumbled in and leaned heavily against the doorframe as he spits out,"I'd usually agree with you, but it's lookin' like we don't have a damn choice. Just take a wild guess of who else is after that Kabuto, and you're not gonna believe why!"

"Raph," Leonardo exclaims, slamming the tea pot onto the counter as he takes swift strides across the kitchen to reach his brother. His blue hues skim over his figure worriedly, his hand resting on his arm as he continues,"Where's Mikey? Is he -"

"He's fine," The red cladded turtle quickly assured the latter, patting the hand against his arm,"But he took a bit of a beating, so I've got him laid out on the couch. Let me grab him an ice pack and I'll go into the details of what went down."

The red cladded turtle looks down at the table, and notices a small brown porcelain cup on a matching saucer. He ravels his thick green fingers around it, and brings it to his snout, sniffing the liquid gingerly. Green gunpowder tea and mint leaves with a subtle hint of sugar. He brings the cup to his lips and takes a sip. The liquid was still a little warm, but his tastebuds do not favor the drink and he has to suppress a gag as he slams it back onto the saucer. Something in his head goes off like a siren,'Damn Leo, never puts enough sugar in his tea!'

The blue cladded arranges his fingers on the edge of his cup and drags it closer to himself protectively as he scowls at the latter. "I'll fix you both a cup of tea. Still take it with a drizzle of honey and as you so eloquently put it 'a shit ton of sugar'?"

"Heh, you remembered, huh, but I'm gonna have to pass. I need something a little stronger," Raphael tells him as he waves him off and turns his back to him. He begins rummaging through the refrigerator pushing aside cans of soda and an expired carton of milk the lazy teenagers hadn't bothered to trash.

The blue cladded turtle asks innocently,"Coffee?"

The red cladded turtle's fingers were already twitching around a bottle of beer, but with a long suffering sigh he pushes the bottle towards the back, and grumbles in a strained voice,"That'll work."

The purple cladded turtle smirks into his cup of tea, intentionally keeping his eyes on the table top. As the blue cladded turtle fixes him a mug of coffee, the red cladded turtle quickly recaps his and his younger brother's excursion to the surface.

"What," Karai shouts slamming her balled fist onto the table, rattling all of the cups,"They're going to use the Kabuto to bring Shredder back from the dead? Is that even possible?"

Leonardo shifts self consciously in his seat as several occupants of the kitchen direct their gaze to him. He hunches over, leaning the underside of his chin against his arm as he squints at his cup of tea.

Donatello is the one to answer after awkwardly clearing his throat,"Not probable, but it is possible, case in point," He adds after a beat his eyes quickly darting to his eldest brother,"Not to mention we're dealing with a dragon spirit from the underworld."

Leonardo, not glancing up, mutters under his breath, thoughtfully rubbing his chin,"...which holds his mental energy..."

"What's with the mumblin'? If you've got somethin' to add speak up, man," Raphael asserts roughly.

The blue cladded turtle raises his head and tells the group knowledgeably,"They're after the Kuro Kabuto because it holds his mental energy, and that is key in a resurrection. Without it they'd just be bringing back a mindless corpse."

"And when did you become a necromancer," The purple cladded turtle questions wryly, holding his steaming cup a few inches from his lips.

"Well, the dude has kinda had a crash course, Don," Casey reminds the purple cladded turtle.

Leonardo laughs lightly at that, shaking his head back and forth as he utters,"I guess I'm the closest thing to a professional on, uh, matters of the undead of anyone in the team, huh?"

Casey pats the blue cladded turtle's shell, agreeing with chortle,"I won't argue you with you there, man. It makes for a sweet title though, huh?"

"Maybe this Tatsu guy is in cahoots with Tiger Claw," Raphael suggests after taking a lengthy sip from his mug of coffee.

Karai informs the latter,"Doubtful. Tatsu seems to think he's the new Shredder."

"That's just what we need - Another Shred-Head! Now, another me..." Casey quips with a wolfish grin, nudging the red haired girl with his elbow.

Donatello turns Karai and inquires in a wary tone,"And I'm guessing you want us to help you keep both sides from getting the Kabuto so that you can have it? Still vying for the Foot, are we?"

"Would you prefer me to cede leadership to another homicidal maniac?"

April interjects,"I just don't get it! After all the Shredder did to you, took from you, why are you still wanting to take up the mantle?"

"You may have been granted the title of kuniochi by my father, but you still know very little of clan practice, O'Neil. Do not speak of what you do not know," Karai responds in a cold tone, regarding the red haired girl with a stony expression,"Tatsu will be coming after all of us. We have no choice but to take him down."

"Alright. That settles it for me. Guys, are you with us," Leonardo asks as he stands from his stool, splaying his palms across the table as he glances around the room.

Raphael gives a curt nod, propping his foot against the underside cabinets to propel himself forward from where he was leaning against the counter. "Kicking some Foot ass? I'm all over it," He says with a smirk as he crosses his arms over his yellow platted chest, nudging his older brother with his elbow,"You know I'm with you, sword boy."

"Aw, yeah! Looks like we're finally gonna get to bust some heads, Raph! No way I'm missing out on that," Casey adds as he offers his fist to the latter, who bumps his own against it.

April huffs, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear as she states,"It looks like I'm in the minority for thinking this is a bad idea," She lifts her shoulders and allows them to sag as she adds,"I'll stay to watch Master Splinter. But if things get messy, you guys know I'm only one call away."

"I don't like it, but it doesn't seem like we have much of a choice in the matter," Donatello concedes as he goes to his feet and turns to his older brothers,"Someone needs to bring the brain cell to share, so it looks like I'll be tagging along with you guys. But, I do believe that Leo should stay here with April."

Raphael barks out in a clipped tone, his eyes squinting at his younger brother,"What the hell are you talkin' about, tech-head? Ain't no way we're benchin' him!"

"Raph," Leonardo starts out tiredly, his hand resting over the edge of his snout.

The red cladded turtle objects once more,"No, man! This is a mission and-and we've gotta have someone to take point, and that someone is you, alright?"

Leonardo falls silent at the proclamation, his mouth still agape as if he were about to speak. The blue cladded turtle blinks at his red cladded brother with comically round eyes the size of saucers. Then his lips curve into a tiny fond smile as he snickers softly, making his two younger brothers and their human allies snap their heads in his direction and gawk at him.

The purple cladded turtle remarks,"Now that's a nice sound."

The blue cladded turtle's hands grasp his teacup as he guides it upwards to take a sip, and he gives a lengthy shake of his head, his little smile broadening to show a glint of his teeth. "I'm tempted to get Don to break out the camcorder because this is something I've got to have on tape," He notes as his snickering resumes and he ducked his head his fingers splaying over his lips,"My little brother, Hamato Raphael, begging me to lead. I'm guessing it's still a little too soon to joke about all of those times the term 'over my dead body' was thrown around -"

"Too soon," The red haired girl throws in.

"Give it a week and they'll loosen up. I've already got a list of 'em," Casey comments.

"Hey, lemme clear something up for you real quick. I ain't beggin', alright? I'm tellin' you that you're going, Fearless," Raphael interjects pointedly, jabbing a finger against his older brother's chest.

Donatello responds uneasily,"As touching as this display of what passes as sentiment for you is, my original stance on the issue stands. In light of recent events, I really don't want to pressure him in to going topside quite yet."

Raphael raises a hand to silence his younger brother as he demands of him, his voice thick and his green hues wide with poorly suppressed worry,"What the hell do you mean by 'recent events', Don? Did somethin' happen in the hour and a half we were gone?"

"Something did occur but I do not believe it is necessary to go into any further details on just what occurred. At least not right now," Donatello explains curtly as a line appears between his brows and his nostrils flare,"What matters is that it did happen and I don't want to endanger my older brother or anyone around him. But if he is insistent on going or if you won't button your lip about it, then I have to dictate some terms."

Leonardo presses his lips into a slight frown as he says in a soft voice,"Look, guys, I don't want to endanger anyone on the team -"

Raphael reaches forward, slapping his palm across the latter's moving lips, effectively silencing his older brother. Smirking, the red cladded turtle asks his purple cladded brother,"So what are the terms?"

Rolling his eyes as he suppresses an exasperated sigh, the purple cladded turtle states plainly,"Simple, we use this mission as a trial run and see how he handles it. While he is with us he'll be using a minimal amount of his newfound, uh, abilities and he won't be thrown into the heat of the combat unless absolutely necessary," After a beat he goes on to add,"Also, I want someone with him at all times. He is not to be left alone."

The red cladded turtle intentionally keeps his face blank as his older brother attempts to pry his hand from his lips and he gives a one shouldered shrug. "Sounds good to me."

The blue cladded turtle wheezes and loudly takes in fresh gulps of air as the latter tugs his hand away. "Why are your hands always so sweaty?"

"Oh, real mature! You licked me," The red cladded turtle retorts as he spots a wet spot of saliva on his palm. Groaning in disgust he rubs his palm in circles over his older brother's cheek as the latter squawks indignantly.

Leonardo swats his younger brother's arm. "Looks like you're all in agreement, despite my own objections. What's new," He asks himself aloud as he gives a lengthy roll of his eyes and folds his arms over his chest, then he continues,"I guess we'll come up with a plan. Karai, tell us all you can about Tatsu. Every detail, no matter how insignificant."

"Whoa, whoa, slow your roll, Leo. You haven't counted all the votes yet," Raphael cuts in as he waggles his brows at the latter.

The red cladded turtle plucks the small tea spoon from his older brother's cup and walks across the kitchen, peaking his head through the entryway. He pokes his tongue out of the side of his mouth, squinting one eye as he tosses the spoon with trained precision to strike his youngest brother on the side of his head. "Oi, Mikey!"

Michelangelo yelps, dropping the bag of frozen peas he had propped on the side of his face. "Ow! Dude, can't a turtle just like veg out for five stinking minutes?"

Raphael shouts,"Yeah, yeah, Mikey. I'll write you an apology letter later, but first we've gotta head back topside and steal Shredder's stupid hat!"

"Ugh, dudes, I've taken enough hits. Can't I just tap out for the night?"

The red cladded turtle grabs the latter by his arms and begins to drag him from the couch, grunting out in agitation,"Come on, bonehead. You can stand to take a few more hits. Besides, you don't wanna miss out on this mission - it's gonna be a whole frickin' reunion!"

"Bonehead? Oh, yeah! Well, who are you calling bonehead, uh, you...you bonehead?"

Donatello snorts. "Oh, yeah, that got him, Mike."

———

 _Leonardo is crouched low, one arm situated over the sheathes at his back with his fingers twitching in anticipation just above the hilt of a katana. Then with a narrowing of his eyes towards his target, a billboard with a large target printed onto it that reads: Bullseye Cola, he does a graceful front flip through the air. As he lands on his feet, he catapults himself upward simultaneously drawing out a single katana and hoisting it in front of himself. He impales the blade into one of the many collapsing rings printed in a colorful array on the billboard, then backflips away from it and touches down on the gravel that is laid across the rooftop. He straightens, assessing the point where his katana blade is protruding from and he slouches, letting out an aggravated groan at the sight of the blade a mere few inches away from the center of the_ _target._

_There's a rushing of air and the nearly soundless shifting of gravel that only trained ears would detect. The blue cladded turtle whipped his head around, his arm extending behind him to snatch his katana blade out of the billboard and point the tip threateningly at the new arrival on the rooftop. His eyes settle on the red cladded turtle, taking in his crossed arms and the haughty smirk that is drawn out on his lips. His younger brother is crouched on one knee and he uncrosses his arms, allowing his hands to hover over his twin sai._

_"Leo, I don't know about all of them fancy moves," Raphael grunts out in time with his sai flying from his grip across the air. Spinning across the rooftop, the sai plants itself in the center of the target with a reverberating thud. He chuckles deeply, jumping to his feet and running across the rooftop, flipping towards where his older brother is standing, before jerking his sai out of its spot on the target," I prefer just getting the job done."_

_Leonardo sighs, holding his katana in front of himself as he utters lowly," Master Splinter always says that grace and form should flow together in beauty creating true power."_

_"Whoa, that's a little too intense, bro. You gotta relax a little," The red cladded turtle counters, propping his arm on the latter's shoulder as he leans in close. He moves away, propping a foot on the edge of the rooftop, before exclaiming," How about a little game of follow the leader?"_

_"And since when did you become leader," The blue cladded turtle demands playfully, a smir_ k _pulling across his lips as he situates his hands on his hips._

_Raphael sends him a wink as he points to himself, declaring boldly," Since right now," Then he spins on his heel, throwing himself off the edge of the rooftop and hurdling over to the next one," Later, Fearless!"_

_Leonardo chuckles in amusement, giving a shake of his head as he counters," Not for long!"_

_Leonardo front flips to the edge of the rooftop that is younger brother is running along with ease, but nearly stumbles off the rim as they reach the end and his brother does a sharp turn. He regains his balance with his arms outstretched to either side of himself, quickly turning and racing to keep up with his brother. The blue cladded turtle laughs aloud as he leaps over onto a slightly shorter building, his legs crouching in midair as his eyes flutter across the gravelly surface until they settle on the red cladded turtle. Just as he lands on his feet, his younger brother is gripping the edge with one hand and backflipping himself off the rim, his free hand in the air and his middle finger up. He lands on a water tower on the next roof, halting for a brief moment to take an exerted breath and then jumps off, seizing a laundry line that runs off it._

_Raphael yelps in surprise as the line snaps in half, sending him hurtling through the air as he whoops," It's your friendly neighborhood turtle-man!"_

_Leonardo is suddenly swinging beside him on another line, his arms held above his head as he spins himself through the air and hovers in front of his younger brother. He places his feet on the latter's plastron, kicking off of him to send himself propelling forward as he quips," You look more like Raphzan, Lord of the Jungle to me!"_

_"What's that make you, huh? Jane," The red cladded turtle scoffs as he watches his brother soar a few feet ahead of him, the blue tails of his mask fluttering in the wind._

_The blue cladded turtle tosses his head back and laughs, releasing the rope as he ducks and rolls across the final rooftop that leads back to their usual manhole cover. The red cladded turtle isn't far behind, landing on his feet with a soft grunt just a few seconds after his older brother. The younger saunters over to him, seizing his brother by the tails of his mask and spinning him around the face him. The latter has a blush creeping up his face as his brother backs him against the brick wall that leads to the rooftop access point for the building they're on top of. The back of his shell smacks against the brick, and the older turtle glances warily at the hand situated at the side of his head and the stockier, more muscular mutant turtle that was leaning into him._

_"You know usually sore-losers don't get a prize," Leonardo points out, fidgeting under the immense weight that was pressing against him._

" _You're about to be the sore one," Raphael promises as he lowers his head to nip at the latter's neck._

_The blue cladded turtle clear his throat awkwardly, craning his neck to the side as he wonders aloud,"Oh, am I?"_

_The red cladded turtle cocks his head as his mouth twists and he gives in," So I don't even get a consolation prize or nothin'?"_

_"You've been watching too much television. Deal or No Deal is really starting to skew your vision of how the world really works."_

" _Oh? Is it now," Raphael inquires in mock curiosity, running his tongue across his lips," Do tell me, Fearless Leader, what's the lesson here?"_

_Leonardo's eyes lashes flutter as he meets the latter's steely gaze, and he leans against him, curling his arms around his neck. "Lesson number one: Only those that win deserve a reward," He jumps up abruptly, curling his legs around the latter's waist and pulling him close as their plastrons collide with a dull thunk," And I won."_

_Raphael sputters as his cheeks turn pink, his hands resting on the underside of his older brother's legs, keeping him propped up against the wall. "Fine, you want your prize? You get to stay leader," He murmurs, his hot breath beating against his neck as his lips hover there," That is until I win next time -"_

_A long, dramatic roll of his blue hues. "Dream on."_

_"And...And," The red cladded turtle smirks as he whispers into the latter's ear and he can practically feel the heat of the blush that burns on the entirety of his older brother's face," How's that?"_

_"G-good, er, very good," The blue cladded turtle responds, receding into his shell in embarrassment," I guess I'll let you lead then."_

_Raphael snorts as his fingers set to undo the buckle of the leather belt that holds his weaponry and he allows it to pool at his feet, his sais clinking softly against the rocky ground at their feet," Thought so. It's the only thing you'll let me lead on."_

Leonardo is snapped out of his thoughts as he turns his head to his purple cladded brother. "Huh," He questions, having not heard what his younger brother had voiced," What'd you say?"

Playfully annoyed, Donatello repeated as he lowered his binoculars,"You just told me to keep my eyes peeled not five minutes ago, and you're the one zoning out over there."

"Oh, sorry. I was...I was just remembering something," Leonardo apologizes, a faint blush coloring his cheeks. His eyes briefly flicker to the fading billboard nearly a dozen feet away, before he raises his own binoculars over his eyes and redirects his attention to the warehouse.

"Are...are you blushing," Donatello questions, leaning closer to his brother, so that their shoulders bump.

The blue cladded turtle grumpily huffs as he sidesteps away from him,"Eyes on the warehouse, Don. I'm just flushed because of the...cold."

"It is a little chilly," The purple cladded turtle admits quietly.

After a brief beat of silence the purple cladded turtle remarks as his own eyes land on what had earlier occupied the latter's gaze,"Hmm, I remember us meeting up here for target practice when we got bored. We'd get a couple of pizzas, some sodas and we'd make a whole game out of it. It was so much fun," His reddish brown eyes scrutinize the indentations from their respective weapons scattered all over the billboard,"That feels like a lifetime ago, doesn't it?"

"It was," The blue cladded turtle states quietly, his blue hues slackening with a sudden sadness. He shakes his head and goes on to say,"We need to be quiet. Let's focus up."

Donatello flinches at the comment, bowing his head and the wind flaps the long ends of his purple mask against his neck. "You know..." His lips twitch at the sides as he attempts to conceal his smirk, and he raises one hand to his back to pull his bo staff from its sheath,"...we always wiped your shell at target practice, didn't we? It was one of the few things we could hold over you!"

Retracting the blade from his bo staff that converted it into a naginata, the purple cladded turtle lifts it high into the air before thrusting it in the direction of the billboard. The blue cladded turtle jumps at the sudden noise, his mask tails flapping wildly in the wind as he twists around the face his brother. He folds his arms over his middle and raises his brows at the latter as he sees the blade imbedded in the second ring around the bullseye. The blue cladded turtle scowls at his younger brother, setting his binoculars down to rest on the edge of the roof.

"What part of be quiet is so hard for you to comprehend," Leonardo scolds tiredly, but his lips betray him as they pull into the smallest of smiles. He ducks his head as he chuckles, settling his hand over his mouth to muffle the sound.

Donatello laughs along with him as he jokingly goads him on,"Come on. At least have the grace to admit it, brother mine."

"Admit what?"

"That you weren't always perfect. You always had to make the rest of us look bad, so I'll admit that it felt pretty good to see you mess up at something for once."

Leonardo tenses at the statement, but he quickly brushes it off, trying to mask the waver in his smile with another shaky laugh. "To be fair, a katana is hardly made to be a projectile weapon," He points out, before spinning around and pouncing to his feet, his arm whipping behind his head to unsheathe one of his svelte katana that cleanly whistles through the air," Mokuhyō!"

Donatello gives a polite clap at the sight of the katana protruding from the middle of the bullseye, then his eyes narrow at the dull glow around the blade. He directs his stare to his older brother and says," I've been meaning to give you the third degree about that. Aside from the healing hands technique Master Splinter taught you, I don't recall you learning any other mantras."

"Let's just say I got an upgrade."

The purple cladded turtle blinks at him, his mouth pulled taut in a thin line as he simply states,"Elaborate."

The blue cladded turtle, visibly uncomfortable, let's out a sigh and gives a quick explanation," I was able to tap into my spirit through death as I never could in life. Before I died, I'd barely scratched the surface at what I could do with my spiritual abilities as a ninja. Healing hands really was just the tip of the ice burg," He settles his hand over his abdomen, almost as if feeling the blades that had protruded from there, his face blank,"But when I died and came back somehow my spirit became even more powerful, allowing me to tap into the mortal soul as few others have been able to do."

The purple cladded turtle nods and asks," I'm guessing you didn't have the time to sit and take some online lessons? So how'd you learn?"

"...From the same being that brought me back, or, uh, helped bring me back. It gave me access to their knowledge so that I could fully use this newfound power," The blue cladded turtle holds up his hand just as the latter opens his mouth and he proclaims coldly," And don't bother yammering on any further on that subject because you'll get the same answer for every question - I have no earthly idea."

Leonardo and Donatello fall back into a tense silence for a few seconds. Donatello says,"I thought you knew me better than that. You know I can't do that."

Leonardo leaned back slightly to face his brother and his blue hues widen as they stare into his, "Don?"

"I told the others that I wouldn't ask, that I would leave it be, but if there's one thing I can't do it's not ask questions. I'm who I am today because of my refusal to do so," Donatello elaborates in a soft voice. His stare falters and the sadness in his voice made his words quiver as he went on to plainly state,"You were dead, Leo."

The blue cladded turtle opened and closed his mouth to respond, but no noise came out. Then he, at last, he says," I-I was... I was."

"You were," The purple cladded turtle paused and swallowed to try and keep his emotions in check, "Gone... For three months you disappeared out of our lives and now you're here—" His voice cracked and he cleared his throat, glancing at the ground and looking back up to him repeatedly.

"Don...please..."

Donatello steadied his gaze as he looked at him, his eyes pleading and confused. "How?"

"I don't know," Leonardo responded quietly, dropping his head so as not to see his penetrating eyes," I just remember...dying...and...then I woke up. It felt like no time had passed but my body was whole again, if not a little worse for wear. And I've been having these visions from a thing, a woman. She calls herself...Heads up!"

"Wha -" The purple cladded turtle manages to fumble out as his eyes dart back to the warehouse as his hands scramble for his binoculars. His magnified eyes immediately land on a shadowy figure entering the warehouse,"Enter Tatsu stage right."

The blue cladded turtle lowers his own binoculars and inclines his head towards the fire escape leading down the side of the rooftop. "Remember stealth only. And stay alert, Rahzar and Fishface are bound to be lurking nearby with our typical turtle luck."

"And you remember the plan. Keep out of the thick of the fighting and don't go off on your own."

The blue cladded turtle doesn't respond as he hops down to the platform, quietly scaling the ladder with ease before back flipping from the final rung into a crouched position in the alleyway. The purple cladded turtle hunches beside his brother, rotating his head towards him as he awaits his signal. The second he sees the latter's head move upwards they're both leaning forward with their arms outstretched behind them as they break into a swift run across the street towards the warehouse. The blue cladded turtle's arm gently bumps against his younger brother's as they both press their shells flush against the cool metal of the warehouse walls, and in unison they begin to inch their way towards the entrance. The older turtle's fingers brush against the latter's knuckles, getting the younger's attention and making him twist his head towards him, his brows raised in silent question.

Karai jumps out from behind the dumpster in the alleyway, snap kicking the remaining two red cladded ninja in their middles, sending them sprawled out onto their backs. Leonardo jerks his head to Donatello, who in turn hurriedly darts towards the breaker box beside one of the garage entrances into the warehouse. Then the blue cladded turtle proceeds to join the kuniochi at the entrance of the warehouse. The purple cladded turtle pries open the box and immediately flicks every switch in the opposite direction, and the lights inside the warehouse immediately fizzle out, then he pulls out a pair of pliers from his belt and begins to fiddle with the wiring. The blue cladded turtle and the kuniochi were already scaling the wall, and the mutant turtle intertwined his fingers together to create an organic platform to boost her upwards into the open window, and a black gloved hand reached out from the window to haul him up.

"At last," Tatsu proclaims as his hands clasped the two half-moon handles protruding from the top of the crate, parting it down the middle to reveal ashen helmet,"The Kuro Kabuto. Now I claim my rightful place as true leader of the Foot Clan."

Leonardo and Karai stood on the metal rafters that arched upwards into the ceiling. The two ease their way across the platform, gingerly prodding their feet across the walkway to test the flooring for any loose or creaky panels. The blue cladded turtle abruptly unsheathed his svelte katanas with a faint metallic hiss, and he drew them to his sides, extending his arms in a wide arc. Then he threw himself forward, the kuniochi running at his side as the two dispatch the small group of ninja lining the rafters with ease. Karai twists her head to the latter, her mouth curled into a silent snarl as she gives him a curt nod. She whips out her tanto and she lunges from the platform with the blade raised over her head, and she intentionally cries out loud enough to get the man's attention. Unperturbed, the black cladded ninja calmly closed the crate containing the helmet and went to his feet. His head abruptly snaps in the direction of where the orange cladded turtle and the hockey mask wearing vigilante were attempting to ease their way out from behind one of the brick columns.

Creating a circle around the man, Karai, Michelangelo and Casey all attack in unison as Tatsu smoothly whips out the single katana strapped to his back. Karai dives forward with her tanto in one hand as Michelangelo brings his leg up into a high kick aimed for the underside of the man's jaw. Tatsu swivels his arm around in a fluid motion to seize his ankle and twist it, making the mutant turtle flip in the air and go flying across the room until he crashes into a stack of crates. Then the black cladded ninja used the coming blow of the kuniochi's tanto blade against her by suddenly pulling back and to the side making her lose balance long enough for him to strike her in the side of the head with the hilt of his katana. Then he kicked the masked vigilante in the way of the orange cladded turtle who'd come back from the heap of crates and was now attempting to charge him. They both fell in a heap at his feet as he jumped away from the two.

Whipping his katana blade to his side, Tatsu is about to unleash another flurry of attacks when the loud speakers overhead emit a high pitched squeal. The man cries out, his hands flying up to clasp his ears as he stumbles forward blindly. Donatello drops in from the open window, landing in a crouched position beside his older brother, flinching violently as the noise reaches his own hearing. Leonardo turns to his younger brother, squinting at him with his hands planted firmly against his ear holes. His younger brother quickly copies him as he huddled closer to him, quickly pulling out his ho staff. Then the two turn to each other, exchanging knowing nods, and they pounce from the platform in unison.

Donatello touches down behind Tatsu, a white membrane stretched over his eyes as he propels his bo staff against the underside of the latter's knees. The black cladded ninja stumbles forward in a daze, falling to his knees.

" _Kizetsu_ ," Leonardo incants, his eyes also white as he swings his glowing palms in an arc high above his head, before slamming them in a sideways position against the man's neck.

Tatsu fully collapses onto the ground, his limbs filling out from underneath him like a puppet cut of his strings. Leonardo turns to Donatello and gives him a quick up and down motion of his head, and the latter pulls a small remote control from his belt and presses a button. Immediately the high pitched squealing was cut off, the final echoes reverberating throughout the warehouse. Casey shakily goes to his feet, offering a hand to Michelangelo and patting his shell as he hauls him upward. Raphael and Shinigami choose that moment to come bursting through the entrance, weapons drawn as if ready for a fight. Karai stands, her brown hues immediately flickering over to land on the collapsed form of Tatsu and her painted lips crease into a sneer.

"How long will that stunning mantra last," Karai inquires of her blue cladded friend as she crouches down beside the man, and yanks off his mask, tossing it aside.

Leonardo answers,"It was a strong one, so it should last for around an hour. Do with him what you will."

"The Foot deserves a noble destiny—one with honor," Karai proclaims to the prone form of the man,"Men like you will taint this clan no longer!"

Stiffly, his lips barely moving, Tatsu grits out with saliva gathering in the corners of his lips,"Y-Y...You t-truly t-think...y-you...d-deserve to w-wield t-the K-Kuro K-Kabuto? Y-you ha-have...y-your m-master's arrogance."

"You'll find I have many qualities of dislike. Besides, deserve's got nothing to do with it," Karai snarls in response,"I will see you brought back to Japan, for I will not dishonor myself or the clan by taking the life of a wounded warrior. But you will stay there, and you will rot. The clan is mine."

Raphael steps forward, propping an arm on Leonardo's shoulder and leaning close as he declares,"See, piece of cake, Fearless. How was that for a test run, Don?"

"Foolish little girl," Rahzar roars as he pounces down from the rafters, sitting in a squatted position on an array of crates,"The Kuro Kabuto is worthy only of..."

Leonardo chokes out a startled breath as Raphael jerked him into a hug and spun them around, sending them both hurdling to the ground. Though he was saved from the brunt of the tackle, the blue cladded turtle still found himself groaning in pain as mutant turtles were not the softest of landing pads. The windows in front of them explode into thousands of little glass shards, blasting across the space with a gust of wind as a pair of furled wings burst from the center. The blue cladded turtle cranes his neck over his younger brother's broad shoulder to see the great leathery wings unfurl to reveal the glittering scarlet scales of the demodragon, and a low thrumming came from its jaw as wisps of smoke leaked from its nostrils. To the mutant turtle's horror, the nightmarish creature seemed even bigger than he recalled. His teeth and claws even looked sharper, and his scales seemed harder and rougher.

"... _The Shredder_ ," Kavaxas roars reverberated through the warehouse like a clap of thunder, saliva spitting out with each jagged word.

"Oh, you just a _had_ to say something," Donatello shrieks shrilly at Raphael from his own crouched position on the floor, his hands folded protectively over his head.


End file.
